Report of the Medical Officer of Health on the public health and sanitary circumstances of Johannesburg.

  • Johannesburg (South Africa)
Date:
[1930]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Report of the Medical Officer of Health on the public health and sanitary circumstances of Johannesburg. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    17/32 (page 15)
    At the Witwatersrand Agricultural Society’s Show an extensive Health Exhibit was given. The exhibit included a Child Welfare Section, a compre¬ hensive Dairy Section, a Food Section, a Eodent Section, a Water Section, and indeed sections dealing with most aspects of the public health. The exhibit was keenly inspected by large numbers of townsmen, townswomen and children, and also by large numbers of people from the countryside. A most successful Fly Competition was held in collaboration with the “ Sunday Times ” during the months of October to January. The competition resulted in the destruction of 10,955,275 flies and the unearthing of 320 breeding- places of flies. Frizes to the amount of £97 10s. were distributed to successful competitors. PNEUMONIA. The death-rates per 1,000 from this disease are as follows:— Whites Natives Eurafricans Asiatics England and Wales 1920-21 . 0-76 2-69 317 2-58 0 99 (1920) 1921-22 . 0-77 2-70 1-81 2-58 0-91 (1921) 1922-23 . 0-45 2-26 2-49 2-58 1-07 (1922) 1923-24 . 0-68 2-73 2-38 2-42 0-87 (1923) 1924-25 . 0-71 2-82 2-31 2-86 1-00 (1924) 1925-26 . 1-06 4-42 4-71 303 0-95 (1925) 1926-27 . 1-13 4-68 6-07 5-73 0-82 (1926) 1927-28 . 1-47 5-09 4-46 5-30 0-94 (1927) 1928-29 . 1-50 5-48 3-29 7-00 0-78 (1928) 1929-30 . 1-74 703 4-77 7-66 1T0 (1929) Pneumonia and acute lung conditions are responsible for over one quarter of the total deaths, viz., 26'7 per cent., which is a figure larger than in previous year. Deaths from these causes would appear to be progressively increasing every year, and the rate for the current year is the highest recorded for the past ten years for all sections of the population except Eurafricans. It is suggested that the prevention and treatment of .acute lung conditions is of even more importance than cancer measures or traffic accidents. MINERS’ PHTHISIS, ROCK-DRILL PNEUMONIA OR SILOCOSIS. 52 deaths (33 Whites, 14 Natives and 5 Eurafricans) were registered during 1929-30, as compared with 91 (64 Whites, 24 Natives and 3 Eurafricans) and 52 (40 Whites, 11 Natives and 1 Eurafrican) in 1927-28 and 1928-29 respectively. The rate is gratifying, and gives indubitable proof that underground con¬ ditions are much improved and continue to exercise the mining authorities in their efforts to diminish preventable dust conditions in the gold mines. ORGANIC DISEASES OF THE HEART. These heart affections include pericarditis, eudocarditis, angina pectoris, valvular diseases and other diseases of the circulatory system. The deaths recorded during the year 1st July, 1929, to 30tlr June, “l930, were 301 for Whites, .as compared with 191 and 273 for the two previous years. This figure represents a rate of 1-65 per 1,000, as against 2‘49 for England and Wales in 1927. For Natives the rate was 0’83; for Eurafricans F61 • and for Asiatics 1-33. DIARRHCEAL DISEASES. The following are the mortality rates per 1,000 of population for the period under notice:— Whites Natives Eurafricans Asiatics Great Towns in England and Wales 1920-21 . 1-05 1-37 4-08 4-62 0-27 (1920) 1921-22 . 0-81 1-52 5-90 4-25 0-45 (1921) 1922-23 . 0-93 1-48 3-44 4-43 0-19 (1922) 1923-24 . 0-68 2-09 6-09 3-92 0-21 (1923) 1924-25 . 0-64 2-03 5-93 4-20 0-19 (1924) 1925-26 . 0-59 2-30 5-54 2-69 0-21 (1925) 1926-27 . 0-99 3-02 4-74 3T1 0-21 (1926) 1927-28 . 0-59 2-32 4-67 2-96 0T5 (1927) 1928-29 . 0-63 2-52 3-00 1-42 0-16 (1928) 1929-30 . 0-65 3-33 2-72 2-53 —