[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for West Ham].

  • West Ham (London, England). County Borough.
Date:
[1947?]
Catalogue details

Licence: Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)

Credit: [Report of the Medical Officer of Health for West Ham]. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    10/108 (page 8)
    VITAL STATISTICS POPULATION. The population of West Ham as enumer ated at the last census in 1931 was 294,278 persons, of whom 143,714 were males and 150,564 females. The Registrar General's estimate of the resident population at the middle of 1946 was 163,730. BIRTHS. The actual number of live births allocated to the Borough during the year was 4,393—the highest number recorded since 1933—of which 2,215 were of male children and 2,178 of females. Compared with 1945 this represents an increase of 680 males and 788 females, a total increase of 1,468 live births. The birth rate for 1946 was 26.8 per 1,000 of the population, as compared with 21.6 for the previous year. The birth rate for 1946 is the highest recorded since 1921. ILLEGITIMATE BIRTHS. Of the 4,393 live births, 239—119 males and 120 females—were illegitimate. This is equal to a percentage of 5.4 of the births allocated and is the highest number recorded since 1921. STILLBIRTHS. The number of stillbirths during the year was 105, of which 57 were males and 48 females. Of these 2 males and 1 female were illegitimate. The stillbirth rate per 1,000 total (live and still) births for 1946 was 23 as compared with a rate of 24 for 1945. DEATHS FROM ALL CAUSES. The nett number of deaths allocated to the Borough for the year 1946 was 1,916 which gives a death rate of 11.7 per 1,000 of the population as compared with a rate of 15.2 for the previous year. Of these deaths 1,025 were of males and 891 of females. The causes of death at all ages and at different periods of life are given in Table I, as supplied by the Registrar-General. The chief causes of death in order of importance were as follows: Heart diseases, 444; cancer, 274; cerebral haemorrhage, 185; bronchitis, 171; tuberculosis of the respiratory system, 122; pneumonia, 79. INFANT MORTALITY. Deaths of infants under one year totalled 143, 78 males and 65 females, giving an infant mortality rate of 32 per 1,000 live births as compared with 38 for the previous year. The rate for 1946, it is pleasing to note, is the lowest on record. Of the 143 deaths under one year no fewer than 82 or 57.3 per cent, were due to three causes. These three causes— diarrhoea, pneumonia and prematurity—are a potent cause of death at the beginning of life. Prematurity caused 36 deaths, diarrhoea 24, and pneumonia 22. MATERNAL MORTALITY. The number of women who died in childbirth in 1946 was 7. Four of these deaths were 8