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
Croydon 1947
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Croydon]
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| Condition. | Entrants. | Intermediates. | Leavers. | Other Ages. | All Groups. | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boys | Girls | Boys | Girls | Boys | Girls | Boys | Girls | Boys | Girls | |
| Cleanliness: | ||||||||||
| (Percentage Clean) | ||||||||||
| Head | 100.0 | 99.9 | 100.0 | 99.9 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | - | 100.0 | 99.9 |
| Body | 100.0 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 100.0 | 100.0 | - | 100.0 | 100.0 | ||
| Clothing (satisfactory) | 100.0 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 99.7 100.0 | 100.0 | - | 99.9 | 100.0 | ||
| Footgear (satisfactory) | 99.7 100.0 | 100.0 100.0 | 99.7 | 100.0 | 100.0 | - | 99.8 | 100.0 | ||
| Nutrition (Normal) | 84.3 | 83.4 | 85.9 | 88.6 | 92.1 | 96.4 | 100.0 | - | 86.6 | 87.4 |
| Defects: | ||||||||||
| Circulatory System | 5.5 | 4.9 | 3.8 | 7.2 | 5.9 | 8.0 | 2.0 | - | 5.1 | 6.2 |
| Pulmonary System | 5.4 | 3.0 | 2.2 | 1.6 | 1.5 | 0.9 | 2.0 | - | 3.7 | 2.2 |
| Skin Diseases | 1.0 | 1.2 | 1.2 | 0.5 | 0.7 | 2.7 | - | - | 0.9 | 1.3 |
| Defects of Nose and Throat | 33.5 | 29.9 | 16.2 | 21.8 | 8.7 | 12.0 | 8.2 | - | 23.5 | 24.2 |
| Enlarged Cervical Glands | 11.2 | 10.2 | 3.7 | 8.3 | 3.1 | 5.8 | - | - | 7.4 | 8.8 |
| External Eye Disease | 0.6 | 1.0 | 0.5 | 1.4 | 1.0 | 0.7 | 2.0 | - | 0.7 | 1.0 |
| Defective Vision | 0.5 | 0.8 | 6.9 | 10.2 | . 10.2 | 10.7 | 6.1 | - | 4.3 | 5.3 |
| Defective Hearing | 0.2 0.3 | - | 0.3 | - | - | - | - | 0.1 | 0.3 | |
| Speech Defects | 1.7 | 0.6 | 0.8 | 0.1 | 0.3 | - | - | - | 1.1 | 0.4 |
| Dental Disease (more than four decayed) | 3.3 | 5.5 | 2.4 | 3.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | - | 3.0 | 4.1 | |
| Dull and Backward | 0.7 | 0.7 | 0.4 | 0.5 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 2.0 | - | 0.5 | 0.5 |
Taking all the groups examined, subnormal nutrition was recorded in 13.0 per cent of the
children as contrasted with 10.8 per cent, in 1946.
CHIEF CAUSES OF EXCLUSIONS FROM SCHOOL.
| Condition. | Exclusions during 1947. | Percentage of total exclusions. | Exclusions during 1946. | Percentage of total exclusions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ringworm | 38 | 0.95 | 33 | 1.20 |
| Verminous Conditions | 551 | 13.85 | 610 | 22.13 |
| Impetigo | 162 | 4.07 | 186 | 6.71 |
| Scabies | 126 | 3.17 | 258 | 9.36 |
| Scarlet Fever | 345 | 8.68 | 257 | 9.32 |
| Measles (inc. German) | 841 | 21.15 | 372 | 13.49 |
| Diphtheria | 11 | 0.28 | 20 | 0.73 |
| Whooping Cough | 303 | 7.62 | 208 | 7.54 |
| Chicken Pox | 467 | 11.74 | 441 | 16.00 |
| Mumps | 881 | 22.15 | 227 | 8.23 |
| External Eye Disease | 42 | 1.06 | 39 | 1.41 |
| Sore Throat | 26 | 0.65 | 18 | 0.65 |
| Other Causes | 184 | 4.63 | 88 | 3.19 |
| Total | 3977 | - | 2757 | - |
The figures for exclusions are not related in any way to the
figures obtained in routine medical inspections.
These, figures show an increase in Ringworm, Scarlet Fever,
Measles, Whooping Cough, Chicken Pox, Mumps, Conjunctivitis,
whilst Impetigo and Scabies showed a decrease. The
practical elimination of Diphtheria as a cause of exclusion is
notable. It is a pleasing commentary upon the effectiveness of
the methods of immunisation employed.