Mortality rate of pulmonary TB in the late 19th century

Abstract

Statistics Annual of Japan was first published in 1882, and it covered all aspects of statistics in Japan including demography. Sex- and age-specific population and the population in each prefecture were available, and the number of death classified by major causes of death was also shown. R Koch reported the discovery of tubercle bacilli in 1882, and from the latter half of 1883, the number of death due to pulmonary tuberculosis (phthisis) were collected and tabulated together with the death due to meningitis and apoplexy, and the collection of data on death due to pulmonary tuberculosis had continued until 1906 except 1885. Industrialization took place in the late 19th century in Japan, and in accordance with the industrialization, the new epidemic of TB started. Mortality statistics on TB was available since 1899 classified as TB of all forms, pulmonary TB, TB meningitis, intestinal TB and other TB, and official statistics on TB was said to be started from 1899. The data on death due to pulmonary tuberculosis in the late 19th century was found out by the author from the old Statistics Annual of Japan, and the mortality rate due to pulmonary tuberculosis was tabulated and calculated for the first time, and the secular trend of mortality from pulmonary TB in 47 prefectures in Japan from 1983 and that of sex- and age-specific rate from 1984 until 1899 were shown in this paper.