*
Maternal Mortality
The maternal mortality rate dropped to 0.06 per thousand total births in 1978 as compared with 0.16 in 1977. The main causes of maternal mortality were sepsis, toxaemias and haemorrhages.
General Mortality
The crude death rate was 4.96 per thousand population. Figure 2 shows the age and sex specific death rates in 1978.
Malignant neoplasms, heart diseases, cerebrovascular diseases and pneumonia were the four leading causes of death. Common malignancies were cancers of the lung, liver, stomach, intestine and nasopharynx.
Viral Hepatitis
A total of 1,230 cases with 47 doaths were notified. 24.6% of the cases were in the age group 15-24 years and the male to female ratio was 2 to 1.
Food Faisoning
A total of 204 outbreaks were reported with 543 persons affected. There were no major outbreaks.
Malaria
III.
COMMUNICABLE DISEASES
(Tables 21 25)
The total number of notifications of communicable diseases during 1978 was 10,479. Tuberculosis comprised 63.2% of the total.
The incidence of major infectious diseases in the past 15 years is shown in Figure 3.
Enteric Fever
The number of cases reported decreased from 389 in 1977 to 369 in 1978. 35% of the cases occurred in young adults aged 15-24 years. A total of 12 typhoid carriers were detected on investigation.
Bacillary Dysentery
The number of cases increased slightly from 322 in 1977 to 406 in 1978. 34% of the cases occurred in children under five as compared to 22% in 1977.
A total of 93 carriers were detected on investigation.
-Practically all 47 cases wore imported.
Influenza and Respiratory Viruses
Since the epidemic of influenza A/USBR/90/77 (H1N1) virus last year, a further outbreak was recorded in Jude influenza A (H3N2) virus prevalent from 1968 to 1977 was detected once in
September 1978. The January 1978. Influenza B occurred sporadically in the last quarter of the year.
There was an increase of respiratory illness caused by Mycoplasma Pneumoniae. A total of 34 laboratory-confirmed cases was recorded in 1978 as compared with 2 cases in 1976 and 1977.
Rubelle
Consequent to an outbreak of rubella in the spring of 1977. vaccination was given to girls aged 11 to 14 years and women of child-bearing age as from September, 1978 onwarda. Occurrence has been sporadic since 1977.
:
IV. HEALTH SERVICES
(Tables 26 410)
Measles
A total of 240 notifications with 1 death were reported. Measles was at one time very prevalent among children under five. Since the introduction of anti-measles vaccination in 1967 the incidence has been reduced drastically and the biennial cycle of infection has been broken. The monthly notifications in the past 15 years are shown in Figure 4.
Cholera
2 cholera cases were reported in 1978. Précautionary and control measures wore taken to prevent the spread of the disease.
Tuberculosis and Chest Service
The tuberculosis death rate further-decreased from 11.8 in 1977 to 9.1 per 100,000 population. The notification rate dropped from 199 per 100,000 population in 1977 to 144 in 1978. Figures 5 and 6 show the mortality and notification rates by age and sex in 1968 and 1978. 3.2% of the cases notified in 1978 were under the age of 15.
Attendances at goverment chest clinics remained at a high level of 1.11 million.
During the year 98% of the newborns were given BCG, This is probably the highest coverage rate in the world. BCG vaccination was introduced in 1952 and infant mortality from tuberculosis consequently declined as shown in Figure 7.
Viral
/Social
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