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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79
and 0'23 other operations performed, making a total average per child of 5.14
operations. In this interval of 15 years it will be observed that the numbers of
children attending as new cases have increased over twelve times, the centres multiplied
ten times. The extraction performed per child remains at about the same figure,
324. Fillings have fallen however to 0 82 per child this year. Other operations also
remain steady at just under 0.2.
"Our reports and observations show that the new entrants in the schools are
showing cases where caries is rampant in a very high degree. The state of the
permanent dentition once the child comes under the assistance of the Council
and the dental surgeons of the centres is made secure, and continues to be relatively
secure, a state of affairs confirmed again by independent observation of children
who have been treated under the Council's scheme. We can only attribute the
incidence of caries of the temporary teeth to the greatly increased consumption
of easily fermented carbo-hydrates. Children of six years of age, born in 1922,
have suffered from the great decrease in the cost of sweetstuffs, white bread, flour
and biscuits. These are at and frequently below relative pre-war prices. We are
hoping that the continued educational efforts by doctors, dental surgeons and all
interested in the little ones, propaganda directed especially towards those girls
about to leave school—the potential mothers of London children—will result
in a more lively interest and practice of oral hygiene and the consumption of a rational
diet in a rational way. That this will in time result in a marked decrease in the consequences
of caries, caries itself, and the need for treatment of our damaged goods,
is borne out by the last column of the following table. Whereas in 1912 the dental
surgeons were struggling to treat some seven decayed teeth per mouth, and succeeding
in treating only five, to-day slightly more treatment per child is given than
the known incidence warrants, a fact which may be accounted for by the treatment
given to the gums in many cases."
Comparison of Returns—Dental Treatment, 1912 and 1927.
| Year. | No. of new cases. | No. of attendances. | No. of teeth or roots extracted. | No. of fillings. | No. of other operations. | No. of general anæsthetics. | Average number of operations per child. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1912 6 centres | 9,799 | 14,664 | 32,057 3.26 extractions per child. | 16,257 1.65 fillings per child. | 2,373 0.23 other operations or treatments. | 2,533 | 514 2.26 operations per child less than the known incidence of caries. |
| 1927 61 (dental) centres | 124,992 | 206,663 | 406,373 3.24 extractions per child. | 102,712 0.82 fillings per child. | 24,994 0.18 other operations or treatments. | 63,635 | 424 0.85 operations per child more than the known incidence of caries. |
Following are the statistics referring to the work done at the Woolwich Remedial
Clinic during 1927.
Children referred to the clinic from school doctors, 84; infant welfare centre,
71; parents, 26 ; hospitals, 19 ; dispensaries, etc., 8; total, 208; number of
attendances during the year, 6,732.
Of the 208 children seen on reference, 166 were given treatment and the other
42, while not being recommended for remedial or massage treatment, were helped,
15435 2
Woolwich
I.C.A.A.
Remedial
Clinic.