Infant mortality in Belfast and Dublin—1900–1969 (original) (raw)
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Summary
Official statistics relating to infant mortality in Belfast and Dublin for the period 1900–69 are analysed.
In 1900 the Belfast infant mortality rate, 153.1, was significantly lower than in Dublin, 169.5 per 1,000 livebirths but by 1969 the Dublin rate, 22.4, was less than that of Belfast, 29.5, and this position was evident in previous recent years. Examination of deaths by cause showed a large decline in mortality from acute infections and tuberculosis but deaths attributed to congenital malformations exhibited a large relative increase and accounted for around 20 per cent of all infant deaths in 1965 in contrast to some 3 per cent in 1915 in both cities. A current excess due to gastro-enteritis was noted in Dublin while in Belfast a large proportion of infant deaths, some 29 per cent of the total, was attributed to postnatal asphyxia and atelectasis. The periods of the two World Wars and of the influenza pandemic in 1918 are discussed.
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Authors and Affiliations
- Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Queen’s University, Belfast
J. H. Elwood
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- J. H. Elwood
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Elwood, J.H. Infant mortality in Belfast and Dublin—1900–1969.Ir J Med Sci 142, 166–173 (1973). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02950007
- Issue Date: December 1973
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02950007