H.—3l

Analysis of Deaths of Infants under One Month of Age, 1926. The following table gives the causes of these deaths during the year :

Maternal Mortality.—The following table shows the number of deaths from puerperal causes, and the rate of such deaths per 1,000 births, for the five-yearly period 1922-26 : —

Table A. —Deaths from all Puerperal Causes, 1922-26.

There has been a gratifying reduction in this death-rate during 1926. It has dropped from 6-48 per 1,000 live births in 1920 to 4-25 last year. During the period 1880 to 1885 this death-rate rose from 3-93 to 7-31, and then dropped to 4-23 in 1889. In 1894 it was 5-29 ; in 1898, 3-84 ; in 1903, 5-86 ; in 1907, 3-88 ; in 1909, 5-09 ; in 1913, 3-58 ; in 1920, 6-48 ; in 1926, 4-25. Since 1916 there lias been more careful inquiry and greater statistical accuracy in the New Zealand returns, and probably last year's rate of 4-25 corresponds with the lower rates of certain earlier years. Distribution of Maternal Deaths. —It is now possible to obtain separate statistics for the fourteen principal urban areas of the Dominion, which include roughly half the total population, and for the rest of the Dominion. Correction has been made by the Census and Statistics Office for women from other parts of the Dominion who died in urban areas. The following table (B) shows that, after making allowance for the fact that the birth-rate in the urban areas is slightly lower than in the rest of the Dominion, the maternal death-rate in the latter from the principal maternal causes is considerably greater than in the urban areas. This is noticeable particularly with puerperal albuminuria and convulsions, puerperal haemorrhage, and other accidents of labour. It holds good even with puerperal septica?mia, but to lesser degree. It is not true of " accidents of pregnancy " ; but these include miscarriages and abortions, which are believed to be more frequent in the cities. It would seem, therefore, that in order to reduce maternal deaths most attention must be given to non urban areas.

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111 ! 111 111 Cause of Death. er »§£ * g | Total. One Day. j^ § d o ' O d rj CH^-C! j j I i EH I en i Influenza . . . . . . .. .... .... 1 I Syphilis .. .. . . . . 1 .... 1 2 Meningitis . . .. .. . . I Convulsions . . .. .. .. 1 15 2 .. 18 Bronchitis . . . . . . . . .. .. 1 2 .. 3 Broncho-pneumonia .. .. .. .. 3 4 4 3 14 Pneumonia .. .. .. ..!.. 2 .. 2 1 5 Diarrhoea and enteritis .. .. ..j.. .. 3 1 2 6 Congenital malformations . . .. 21 42 7 5 7 82 Congenital debility, icterus, sclerema ... 25 41 11 7 5 89 Injury at birth . . .. .. .. 13 27 3 .. .. 43 Premature birth .. .. ..154 129 22 20 10 335 Other causes peculiar to early infancy 28 54 3 1 .. 86 Accidental mechanical suffocation (overlain, .. 2 .. . . .. 2 &c.) Other causes .. .. .. .. 2 23 4 5 5 39 Total, both sexes .. .. 244 339 60 47 35 725 I

Number of Deaths from Death-rate per 1,000 Live Births from Year ' p , Other All D „ i Other All Septicaemia. | Septieamia. ; & 1922 .. .. I 52 97 149 1-79 3-35 5-14 1923 .. .. 52 91 143 1.-86 3-25 5-11 1924 .. .. | 52 88 140 1-86 I 3-14 5-00 1925 .. .. 42 89 131 1-49 3-16 4-65 1926 .. .. 39 81 120 1-37 2-88 4-25