Annual report on the Malayan Union.

Date:
[1948]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Annual report on the Malayan Union. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    114/234 (page 90)
    Possibly incomplete registration may account for part of the apparent improvement. Changes in the age distribution of the Chinese and Indian groups in the population have also to be taken into account, for in these groups there is now an abnormally high proportion of young adults, who are the least vulnerable section of the population. These factors do not apply in the case of the Malay population. Any errors in recording are likely to be the same from year to year. For the Malays, the general death rate is 19.8 per 1,000, compared with 24.6 per 1,000 in 1947, and the infantile death rate is 111 per 1,000 live births, compared with 129 in 1947. With the exception of Kelantan, where the figures are on the same level as in 1947, there has been an improvement in the rates for Malays, in all States and for all age groups. The natural increase of the Malay population, by the balance of births over deaths is 42,771, which is better than the natural increase for 1947 by 1,326, in spite of the fall in the birth rate. Many factors contribute to this improvement; the most important seems to be the continuing reduction in the incidence of malaria. The high mortality during the years of the Japanese occupation is still a factor. A proportion of the old and infirm, who would have been expected, under average conditions to die during the year under review, died during the war years; but this factor applied equally in 1947. There appears to be no doubt that the statistics for 1948 indicate a real improvement in the public health. New Developments. Amongst the new developments which are mentioned in the report and of special interest are the dramatically successful results of the treatment of tropical typhus by Chloromycetin, reported in the section dealing with the Institute for Medical Research, and the very successful results from the use of Sulphetrone and Sulphone in the treatment of leprosy. Infantile and Maternal Mortality. Infantile Mortality. The deaths of infants under one year numbered 18,073 out of 81,172 deaths at all ages. Live births numbered 201,712 and the infantile mortality rate is 89 per 1,000 live births. The correspon¬ ding figures for 1947 were 21,555 deaths with a mortality rate of 102. The racial distribution of infantile mortality is as follows (the corresponding figures for 1947 are in brackets) : Infant Races. Infant Deaths. Births. Mortality Rates. Malays .. 10,126 (13,020) .. 91,165 (100,474) . . Ill (129) Chinese . . 5,694 (5,848) . . 84,732 (82,862) . . 67 (70) Indians .. 2,139 (2,596) . . 24,144 (26,044) . . 88 (99) Europeans 3 (5) .. 336 (259) . . 8 (9) Eurasians 17 (18) .. 336 (351) .. 50 (51) Others 94 (68) .. 999 (825) . . 94 (82) All Races . . 18,073 (21,555) . . 201,712 (210,815) . . 89 (102)