[Report 1957] / Medical Officer of Health, Prestwich Borough.

  • Prestwich (England). Borough Council.
Date:
1957
Catalogue details

Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Credit: [Report 1957] / Medical Officer of Health, Prestwich Borough. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    5/30 (page 1)
    Public Health Department, Town Hall, PRESTWICH. June, 1958» TO HIS WORSHIP THE MAYOR AND ALL MEMBERS OP THE COUNCIL. I have the honour to present the Annual Report for the year 1957 on the health ajid sanitary conditions of the district. The population according to the Registrar General's estimate is now 33,640, which again shows a slight decrease compared with the previous year. The *adjusted live birth rate was 14.5 per thousand of the popu¬ lation and when allowance is made for the persons in Prestwich Hos¬ pital, the adjusted rate becomes 15.9 per thousand. This rate is lower than the national rate which was I6.I per thousand. Similarly, the adjusted death rate after making allowances for the hospital population was 9.5 compared with a national rate of 11.5. ] There was again a marked preponderance of male deaths from cancer of the lungs and bronchi. Fourteen males and one female died from this cause. Over the last 17 years, the national incidence and death rate of this disease has increased and is increasing every year, and has now become a problem of major proportion. While there are still many factors which call for further eluci¬ dation, there is a growing weight of evidence confirming the relation¬ ship between cancer of the lungs and smoking, particularly cigarette smoking. The Ministry of Health has now accepted the Medical Research Council's findings as establishing a causal relationship between smok¬ ing and lung cancer and it is essential that all smokers should be made to realise what this means. Among confirmed smokers it is doubtful if any propaganda would be powerful enough to cause them to stop smoking, but every effort must be made to prevent young people from acquiring the habit. During the year there were 12 infant deaths, 7 of which occurred dtoring the first week of life, and 5 which occurred during the first year of life. The majority of these deaths were due to congenital abnormality and prematiirity. The infant mortality rate was 28 per thousand live births com¬ pared with the national rate of 23 per thousand live births, but where the n\imbers are small, a five year average gives a more realis¬ tic figure and the average for the last five years was 20,2 per thous¬ and live births. Infectious disease consisted principally of an outbreak of measles. There were I4 cases of respiratory tuberculosis and one case of non-respiratory tuberculosis and four deaths, excluding those which occxirred in the Prestwich Hospital. All samples of milk taken for examination for tuberculosis and bacteriological content were satisfactory. Water supplies from the three water boards were generally satis¬ factory, Pour adverse reports were received and I was informed that these, were caused by disturbance in the mains during and after main- -1-