[Report 1956] / Medical Officer of Health, Wigan County Borough.

  • Wigan (England). County Borough Council.
Date:
1956
Catalogue details

Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Credit: [Report 1956] / Medical Officer of Health, Wigan County Borough. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    27/124 (page 23)
    INFANTILE AND MATERNAL MORTALITY Infantile Mortality The number of deaths of children under one year is 46, or 35.8 per 1,000 births, and of children over one year and under five years 6, or .07 per 1,000 of the population. (In 1955 there were 38 deaths under one year, a rate of 33.3 per 1,000). The Neo-Natal death rate (deaths per 1,000 live births on or before the 28th day of life) was 24.1. The actual numbers :— M. F. Total Legitimate . 20 11 31 Illegitimate .... — — — 20 11 31 Of these 19, i.e.y 61% died during the first week of life. The Infantile Mortality Rate at 35.8 is higher than the record low figure of 27.0 which was recorded in 1954. The infant deaths occurred as follows :— Home Other Address Hospital, Etc. 1 1 24 Billinge 12 R.A.E. Infirmary 4 Whelley Hospital 1 Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital 46 Total. Prematurity remains as the greatest single cause of death (18), whilst congenital malformations claimed 8, pneumonia 6 and gastro-enteritis 4. An analysis of live premature births is set out on p. 22. The Still-birth rate for the year is 39.64. The average rates for the previous 25 years are as follows :— 1931-1935 54.2 1936-1940 48.8 1941-1945 38.4 1946-1950 36.1 1951-1955 32.7 The Peri-Natal rate, using the formula : Infant deaths under 1 week -f- stillbirths x 1,000 live births -j- stillbirths gives a figure for the year of 54. The average rates for the previous 25 years are as follows :— 1931-1935 . 81.4 1936-1940 . 78.4 1941-1945 . 62.4 1946-1950 . 55.4 1951-1955 . 58.0 Maternal Mortality No death was recorded. Comparative figures for the last five years 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 Deaths . — 1 — Rate .... .... .... — 0.74 — Births . 1,347 1,303 1,224 1,141 1,284