[Report 1921] / Medical Officer of Health, Eastbourne County Borough.

Eastbourne (England). County Borough Council.

Date:: 1921

Catalogue details

Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Credit: [Report 1921] / Medical Officer of Health, Eastbourne County Borough. Source: Wellcome Collection.

21/98 (page 11)

INFANTILE MORTALITY. The nett number of deaths of infants, that is of children under one year of age, was 60 (males, 38 ; females, 22). Infantile mortality is calculated on the number of births in the same period and for 1921 was at the rate of 75.4 per 1,000 births. The following table compares this mortality with those of the previous ten years : — Year. Deaths. Mortality Rate. 1911 92 106 1912 65 73 1913 60 69 1914 50 59 1915 76 98 1916 72 89 1917 54 88 1918 50 74 1919 39 57 1920 59 59.8 Average of 10 years 61.7 77.3 In the closing years of the last Century, 1898, 1899 and 1900, the mortality rates were 139, 145 and 121 respectively. The subjoined table shows the causes of death and the ages at death of the infants who died. The reduction in mortality of infants in recent years has been mainly of those in the later months of the first year. Ante-natal work is very important to stop the deaths in the first few days of life. There were eleven deaths of illegitimate children. The comparative mortality rates of these and of legitimate children are as follows : — Legitimate infants mortality rate 66 per 1,000 births. Illegitimate infants mortality rate 196 per 1,000 births. Throughout England and Wales the illegitimate rate is about double the legitimate. The infant mortality rate for England and Wales in 1921 was 83 per 1,000 births, or 7.6 per 1,000 births more than that of Eastbourne. The steps taken to prevent Infant Mortality are detailed in the Maternity and Child Welfare Section of this report.