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A sample of death certificates matched with 1960 Census records permitted comparison of response data for items asked on both records. Estimates of bias in death rates which are based on information from the two records are derived from the comparison data. Most of the comparisons yielded small discrepancies of inconsequential effect on the mortality rates. Some large inconsistencies, however, of potentially serious impact on the death rates were observed. The comparisons are examined and the implications of the results for the relevant mortality rates are discussed. In addition, age-specific death rates "corrected" for the disparities found in the age information on the two records are presented.

Death rates from heart disease in cities and regions of England and Wales, based on death certificates for 1963, are compared with death rates from the same causes in 10 Latin American cities, San Francisco, USA, and Bristol, England, derived from the Inter-American Investigation of Mortality which obtained histories and clinical records of fatal illnesses for the years 1962-64 by a sampling method. Death rates in Bristol derived from the 2 sources showed an agreement close enough to justify comparisons between official rates for England and Wales and the data for the Latin American cities.Comparing standardized death rates for males in the Latin American cities with those for the corresponding populations in the English conurbations and cities, the ratio for coronary disease was found to be 0.4; for other degenerative heart disease it was 1.0; for hypertensive heart, 2.2; for other heart disease, 1.5. The corresponding ratios for females were: 0.55, 1.0, 3.0, and 1.7, respectively. When the hospital regions of England and Wales were included, a geographical pattern could be seen, particularly for males, the highest rates for coronary and degenerative heart disease being found in northern England and the lowest rates in central and western cities of Latin America. For hypertensive and other heart disease the pattern was different.Standardized sex ratios for total heart disease mortality at ages from 45 to 74 years in 30 countries are largely affected by the proportions of deaths attributed to arteriosclerotic and degenerative disease but they suggest that geography, country of origin and possibly climate are also factors that differentially affect the sexes and, in consequence, affect the sex ratios.

On the average, one-fourth of North Americans visiting developing countries experience a self-limited diarrheal illness that interferes with holiday or business activities. Recent work suggests that these episodes are caused by a small inoculum of enteropathogenic Escherichia coli which are common in the country visited and rare in the country of origin. Neither antimicrobial treatment nor anti-diarrheal agents have proven benefit once the illness has begun. Despite its frequent use, iodochlorhydroxyquin has not been shown in double blind studies to be effective as a preventive agent, and may be dangerous. The status of furazolidone for prevention of tourist diarrhea is questionable. Both neomycin sulfate and phythalylsulfathiazole have demonstrated efficacy as chemoprophylactics in Mexico. However, their use should be restricted to limited types of travel and travelers. General admonitions concerning avoidance of certain ingestibles are recommended; despite questionable value in preventing travelers' diarrhea such precautions may prevent more serious gastrointestinal illness.

Connective Tissue Massage has been practiced as a therapeutic procedure for three decades. In Germany, its country of origin, as in most parts of Europe, it is an integral part of Physiotherapy and is taught at every training school. The medical practitioner has accepted C.T.M. as a manual form of neural therapy and prescribes it freely for the benefit of his patients. In English speaking countries C.T.M. is almost unknown, its slow acceptance being due to the following reasons: 1. Our present day knowledge makes it impossible to account on a scientific basis for ail the effects gained by the application of C.T.M. 2. The misleading name "Connective tissue massage", by emphasizing the word massage makes the treatment suspect to the medical practitioner and the physiotherapist., (Copyright © 1969 Australian Physiotherapy Association. Published by . All rights reserved.)

The 1962-66 cancer mortality of Polish migrants to Australia is compared with the cancer mortality prevailing in Poland and in Australia. Small numbers compel to limit the analysis to the most frequent cancer sites only.The main findings are:(a) Stomach cancer mortality of Polish migrants to Australia is intermediate between the high mortality in Poland and the much lower one in Australia.(b) Intestinal tract and breast cancer mortality of Polish migrants is displaced upwards, from the low Polish level to the much higher Australian one.(c) Lung cancer mortality of Polish male migrants does not differ distinctly from the mortality observed both in the country of origin and of adoption of these migrants.The presented findings are compared with the results of a similar study of Polish migrants to the U.S. Aims for future studies are briefly outlined.

Abstract This paper presents summary statistics of immigration into the West Indies, under indenture or government sponsorship, during the period 1834-1918. The sources reveal a few discrepancies, but are sufficiently consistent to permit the construction of a series for each of the ethnic groups introduced. Most of the problems involved in constructing these series centre around the fact that a variety of sources have to be utilised. Immigration figures of East Indians, Portuguese, Chinese, Europeans and others into the several West Indian colonies have been prepared for each calendar year or season, but to conserve space are presented here in summary form. In the case of African immigration it is possible to give their country of origin. The only group of immigrants who were involved in return movements of any consequence are the East Indians.

Cholelithiasis among male and female patients at the Royal Melbourne Hospital was studied, and the incidence of the disease in relation to various clinical and dietary factors is discussed. The patients are distinguished by sex and country of origin, a distinction being made between patients born in Australia and those born in southern Europe and now living in Australia. Appropriate control groups were also studied.It was shown that the incidence of cholelithiasis is higher in women than in men (3.0% as opposed to 0.7% in the Melbourne Hospital group), and higher among patients born in southern Europe than in Australia. A correlation was also established between marriage and the disease, and, in women, between having had children and the disease. The dietary investigations showed that in Australia those patients with cholelithiasis were fatter than the control patients. Equally well there seemed to be a strong family tendency to develop gallstones. No association was found between cholelithiasis and blood grouping. In the comparison of the southern European group and the Australian-born group it was shown that the former group had a higher incidence of the disease (9.3% as opposed to 2.3%), and that the overall incidence of cholelithiasis increased with age in men and was constant in women. However, when taken separately, the incidence in Australian female patients did increase with age, the higher proportion of women from southern Europe with the disease where the incidence was, in fact, evenly distributed in all age groups, accounting for this apparent constancy. It was also shown that a woman born in southern Europe increased the risk to herself of developing gallstones within two to five years of moving to Australia, and the contributory factors are discussed.