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"WELFARE.—7 cases have been referred during the year, 2 are receiving
regular treatment, 3 are to be seen again in January and 2 have refused
treatment."
(g) Dental Defects.
Statistics are given at the end of the report.
Orthodontic Clinic.
"This work has been carried out for the Edmonton school children during
the year 1946 by the three full-time dental officers, with the assistance of an
Orthodontic Specialist who attends on two mornings a month.
"The Specialist has been responsible for diagnosing the dental abnormalities
and prescribing the appropriate treatment. The routine fitting and
adjustment of appliances has been the responsibility of the dental officers.
Edmonton is fortunate in having the service of three men who undoubtedly
take great interest in this work, and your Specialist is well aware of what he
owes them.
"The response on the part of the patients is good, and satisfactory results
are being obtained in a high proportion of cases. Parents in general are most
grateful for the service.
"The mechanical work is carried out by the dental mechanic with great
skill, especially in those cases which require intricate appliances and it is true
to say that with a less able man the whole scheme might collapse.
"As a footnote to this report it is interesting to note that the major
contributing factor in the production of the abnormalities seen in the clinics
is the premature extraction of molar teeth from the first dentition. This is
primarily due to ignorance on the part of the parents, in not knowing the
importance of the health of these teeth. Also one wonders if the children of
the borough can be treated early enough, as these teeth are frequently found
in an unhealthy condition from the second birthday onwards. This paragraph
has only been added to this report as it was thought that the Committee might
sometimes wonder why so many children require specialised treatment.