Cause of death

[Top-of-the-hill]

  I have just received my first PDF death certificate, for a man who died at the age of 41 in 1872, and all it says is "Paralysis". Not all that helpful, so now I am wondering, polio (unlikely - he was a farm labourer) or injury? He was unmarried and living at home in 1861 and 1871, entered both times as ag. lab. A bit more information would have been nice!

[stanmapstone]

General Paralysis could be General Paralysis of the Insane, caused by Syphilis.
I wonder if it would be considered embarrassing or shameful to  families to give the cause of death as Syphilis, which is why it is given as just Paralysis.

Stan

[Muffin41]

Look it up on Wikipedia it has the following.

Paralysis is most often caused by damage in the nervous system, especially the spinal cord. Other major causes are stroke, trauma with nerve injury, poliomyelitis, cerebral palsy, peripheral neuropathy, Parkinson's disease, ALS, botulism, spina bifida, multiple sclerosis, and Guillain–Barré syndrome.

[Top-of-the-hill]

   Oh my word! All I thought of was polio. I think I can rule out many of those, but stroke is possible, and of course, accident. Farm work has always been dangerous.

[familydar]

Is it absolutely certainly paralysis and not phthisis (tuberculosis)

Jane

[Top-of-the-hill]

   Definitely paralysis - I was half expecting TB.

[stanmapstone]

If it was Paralysis caused by Syphilis then he would have almost certainly have been in an institution, and not home. Where did he die?

Stan

[Top-of-the-hill]

  He died at home, death registered by a neighbour, present at the death. (His mother was 75, presumably the neighbour had been helping with the nursing)

[Deirdre784]

If it was Paralysis caused by Syphilis then he would have almost certainly have been in an institution, and not home. Where did he die?

Stan

I have a death cause of ‘convulsions, 5 days, general paralysis, certified’ at home from 1851. He was an engineer aged 33. Knowing no more I took this literally when i had the death notice and it was only very recently that I discovered the accepted (real) meaning of general paralysis (which sounds awful).

I have another one, from 1923, where cause was ‘dementia paralytica, some years’, which was in a mental hospital.