London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
London County Council 1927
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]
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158
As a result of the visits and re-examinations the following re-classification
took place : 31 were transferred from schools for the physically defective to schools
for the mentally defective; 2 from schools for the partially blind to schools for the
mentally defective; 1 from a school for the deaf to a school for the mentally defective;
3 from schools for the mentally defective to schools for the deaf; 6 from schools for
the hard of hearing to schools for the deaf; 1 from a school for the physically defective
to a school for the hard of hearing; 1 from a school for the deaf to a school for the
hard of hearing; 65 were excluded as imbecile; and 59 were invalided on medical
grounds.
Children
admitted
to P.D.
schools.
The following statement shows the nature of the conditions found among the children certified as suitable for admission to physically defective schools at the admission examinations during the year:—
| Morbid condition. | Boys. | Girls. | Total. | Morbid condition. | Boys. | Girls. | Total. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Infantile paralysis | 65 | 36 | 101 | Heart disease— | |||
| Cerebral paralysis | 12 | 7 | 19 | Congenital | 30 | 32 | 62 |
| Various paralyses | 24 | 20 | 44 | Acquired valvular | 109 | 150 | 259 |
| Tuberculosis of bones and joints | 147 | 95 | 242 | Acquired non-valvular | 31 | 47 | 78 |
| Other diseases | 36 | 57 | 93 | ||||
| Congenital deformities... | 25 | 12 | 37 | ||||
| Other deformities | 57 | 27 | 84 | 536 | 483 | 1,019 |
There were also 681 cases returned on improvement to elementary schools or,
when over 14 years of age, excluded as no longer certifiable ; the details are as follows :
R.= Returned on improvement to Elementary Schools.
E. = Over 14 years of age, excluded as no longer certifiable.
Special schools.—Physically defective, R. 146, E. 265; Mentally defective,
R. 19, E. 178; Blind, R. 0, E. 3; Deaf, R. 1, E. 1; Mvope and Partially Blind,
R. 3, E. 37 ; Hard of hearing, R. 14, E. 14. Total, R. 183, E. 498.
De-certification
of P.D.
children.
The following is a table relating to different conditions for the year 1927.
| Defect. | Cases passed no longer certifiable. | Cases passed fit to return to elementary school. |
|---|---|---|
| Heart | 94 | 21 |
| Rheumatism | 3 | 10 |
| Tuberculosis | 61 | 29 |
| Infantile paralysis | 47 | 10 |
| Rickets and deformities from this cause | 11 | 30 |
| Various traumata | 13 | 9 |
| Congenital deformities | 13 | 5 |
| Non tuberculous arthritis and synovitis, including pseudo-coxalgia | 2 | 10 |
| Miscellaneous—Nervous conditions, ataxia, etc | 7 | 5 |
| Chorea | 9 | 13 |
| Anæmia | 1 | 2 |
| Bronchiectasis | — | 1 |
| Osteomyelitis | 4 | 1 |
| 265 | 146 |
An analysis has also been made of the 499 cases for admission to special (P.D.)
schools, in which the children were either returned to elementary schools or
invalided.