[Report 1950] / Medical Officer of Health, Oxfordshire County Council.

  • Oxfordshire (England). County Council. n 81006935.
Date:
1950
Catalogue details

Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Credit: [Report 1950] / Medical Officer of Health, Oxfordshire County Council. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    Towns. It is difficult to foresee the future trend in birth rate as the post-war prophets have already been confounded. The stillbirth rate remains stationary (0.29) and compares favourably with the National Rate of 0.37. There is no significant alteration in the illegitimate birth rate but it is noteworthy that an illegitimate child has more than a three-fold risk of dying in infancy as compared with a legitimate child. Death Rate There is no significant alteration in death rate 10.8 (10.9) which is slightly less than that for England and Wales 11.6 (11.7). Coronary disease, angina pectoris, cerebral thrombosis and cerebral haemorrhage still extract their toll of life accounting for more than 1 /3 of all deaths. This is surprising since they are normally associated with the emotional tension of living in the rush and worry of a highly industrial and com¬ petitive community. Ten per cent of all cases of cancer are now pulmonary. In recent years there has been a marked increase in this condition, particularly among middle-aged males. Although much of the increase may be due to increased medical vigilance and improved diagnostic methods the position is sufficiently serious to justify the Medical Research Council’s recent decision to investigate the situation. Evidence is accumulating to suggest that it may be due to cigarette-smoking. Table Showing the Chief Causes of Death in Oxfordshire for the Year 1950 Disease Total number of deaths Heart Disease 616 Cerebral haemorrhage, thrombosis etc. 336 Cancer 275 Infectious diseases (other than tuberculosis) 105 Bronchitis ... 70 Other circulatory diseases 65 Gastro-intestinal disease 33 Uro-genital disease 47 Motor Vehicle Accidents 29 Other forms of violence ... 53 Deaths from Cancer Age Group 0 1 5 15 25 45 65 75 T otals Males . .. - 1 1 2 8 46 40 39 137 Females *“—* 14 53 31 40 138