Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-03-03
PlTTSBURG ALL RIGHT.
The Increase of Death Rate Caused
by Complications of Grip
NOT so BIG As In OTHER CITIES.
No Longer any Fear Of 1t Becoming an
Epidemic This Year.
FEATURES OF TIE HEALTH STATISTICS

'Thank heaven it looks as if we were moi
going to have repetition of last years ls
grippe epidemic" said DR.. McCandless, OF
the Board of Health, yesterday, as he put
the finishing touches 10 the statistical part
OF his annual report. Continuing he stated
that in the year 1891 there were $3.50 deaths
as compared to 1919 the year before. The
increase, he said, was due chiefly to the
grip and its complications He thought
Pittsburg got off as easily as any other city
in the country, and that its death
rate would continue lower than the majority
of other large cities In New York, the
only city that has yet been heard from, the
percentage of death was 26 and a fraction.
In Pittsburg the calculation was made on a
population of "a, GOO, making rate of %. CO.
The percentage in 1890 was 20.74.
OF the 1882 deaths, only los were re-
turned as having been caused by influenza
or the grip The complications following
attacks of the grip, however, are be-
lieved to have been responsible for
over 1000 deaths There were 740
from pneumonia alone and 2O7 from bron-
chitis Both diseases followed the grip
epidemic last year and in the majority
physicians think death was indirectly
caused by the Russian terror.
Results of The Epidemic
Besides pneumonia and bronchitis there
were 172 fatal cases of cerebro spinal fever,
disease which followed the grip and by
many physicians thought to be due to it.
In 1880 there were onlv "a deaths from
cerebro spinal fever and but one more case
reported from influenza In the same year
there were 800 deaths from pneumonia and
1j3 from bronchitis
Another explanation of the increased
death rate was the diphtheria epidemic that
lasted about two months The number of
deaths from it was 301, compared with 266
the. year before, which was also an un-
usually big number. In 1889 there were 213
and in 1888 126 The latter is about the
normal rate. The greatest number of deaths
there has been. in any single year in Pitts
burg was in 1878, when there were 4S3.
Consumption as usual leads with the
greatest number of.deaths from any one dis
ease, there having been 432. A number of
these cases are believed to have been
fastened by the grip. From contagious dis
eases there were $40 deaths. Of these diph-
liberia has the greatest number. Typhoid
lever follows with 24S There were Ia
deaths from whooping cough, an unusually
large number Only one died from the dis
agreeable, distressing mumps. There were
81 deaths from measles, lower rate than
the average.
Not Fatal ailnent.
rheumatism with all its terrors was only
fatal in 60 cases. Of the entire number of
deaths. 1908 were of native white Ameri-
can citizens. Otthese 9, 100 were males and
1,1S1 females. Among the foreign popu-
lation. 94S males and Cos females died dur
ing the year.
The colored people demonstrated their
longevity by the fact that there were oniv
152 male and 131 female deaths. OF the
1882 who died during the year, 1,524 were
under the age of one wear; about ], 800 were
between one and five years: none had
passed the century mark and only 10 were
between 90 and 100
In commenting on the report Yesterday |
DIR. McCandless said: s'The increased |
death rate is due almost entirely to the |
grin. and does not indicate that Pittsburg !
will not continue to be healthy city, All |
over the world the number of deaths in |
1891 is greater by far than in preceding |
years. Not city in America escaped the |
epidemic, and nearly all suffered more |
itself TO be terrible disease |
from which there is no retreat. 1t is ad- |
mitted to be disease of which the germs |
are transmitted through the air, and there |
is therefore no prevention. think, or at |
at least 1 hope, that it spent its greatest
fury last wear.
No Signs of an Epidemic.
"There have only been few deaths re-
ported from it this winter, and as it looks
now there will not be an epidemic. Last
wear it did not start until about this time,
but there were more cases of sickness than
there are now. There have been few
cases of grip in Eastern cities
this year, but nothing like the
number there were at the same time in 81.
The country districts seem to be suffering
this wear more than the cities. 1 know of
no condition that accounts for this. If the
grip follows the characteristics of other
epidemics of its nature, ii will not appear
again for several years. Diseases that are
carried by germs in the air usually last
three years, the first being mild the second
severe and the last ike the first If we
have only light attack of grip this year,
there will be good grounds to hope that our
visitor will not appear next year.
81 have not received the reports from
other cities Yet, but will DO so soon. Pitts
burg is as healthy as the majority OF the
other cities, however, and l am confident
the increase here will be less than the aver
q ho