[Report 1970] / Medical Officer of Health, Worthing Borough.

  • Worthing (England). Borough Council.
Date:
1970
Catalogue details

Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Credit: [Report 1970] / Medical Officer of Health, Worthing Borough. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    14/112 (page 12)
    Stillbirths and infant mortality: There were six stillbirths in 1970 (seven less than in 1969) and 20 infant deaths under one year (14 in 1969). Of the 20 infant deaths during 1970 ten were on the first day of life and a further three within the next four weeks. The causes of death was mainly a result of prematurity in ten cases, and the babies died within days. A further six had congenital abnormalities of the brain and heart, two died from pneumonia, one from bronchitis and one from peritonitis. Figures for perinatal mortality, i.e. stillbirths, and deaths in the first week of life, give a better indication of the hazards of being born than do the simple infant mortality rates. The following table compares the Worth¬ ing figures with those for England and Wales in the past five years:— Year No. of stillbirths No. of deaths in first week Perinatal mortality rate* Corresponding rate for England and Wales* 1966 11 9 22.6 26.3 1967 18 6 27.4 25.4 1968 14 4 19.9 25.0 1969 13 8 23.7 23.0 1970 6 11 19*5 230 * per 1,000 total live and stillbirths Deaths from Heart Disease: Disease of the heart was again the commonest of all causes of death. Of the 2,145 deaths it was the cause in 835 cases (male 329 and female 506). It represented 38-9 per cent, of the total deaths from all causes and was equivalent to a death rate of 9-8 per 1,000 of the population. The table below shows the number of deaths from heart disease and the rates per 1,000 of the population in the past 5 years. Year Ischaemic heart disease Hyper dise tensive ase Other (including rheumatic) heart disease Total Rate per 1,000 of the population M. F. Total M. F. M. F. M. and F. 1966 198 180 378 4 7 102 201 692 8.5 1967 244 221 465 3 15 100 186 769 9.5 1968 272 310 582 5 15 48 115 765 9.2 1969 288 348 636 5 6 33 92 772 9.3 1970 276 375 651 8 12 45 119 835 9.9 Ischaemic heart disease includes “ coronary thrombosis,” “ cardiac infarction,” “angina,” etc., and deaths from these causes continue to rise. For the third year running there were more deaths among women than men. This was, however, only true in the age group 75 years and over, and must therefore be mainly a reflection of the much larger numbers of females in the town who live to this age or more. At the 1966 sample census there were approximately 8,300 females in this age group, but only 3,400 males.