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139
ARTIFICIAL SUNLIGHT TREATMENT.
Dr. E. M. Layman, the Medical Officer in charge of Artificial Sunlight
Treatment, has submitted the following interesting report:—
"The work at our two Clinics, Wellington Road, Bow, and Simpson's
Road, Poplar, has gone on steadily and satisfactorily during 1927. The
change from Avenue Road to the new and fine quarters in Wellington
Road, in August, has meant a great improvement in hygiene and comfort
for mothers and babies.
The lamps run well and smoothly.
We have grouped our ordinary patients (children under 5) as seems
most informative, for the report.
'Miscellaneous' includes mental backwardness and nervous depression
as well as a few 'only children' with nervous excitability. (See summary
on next page.)
Rickets in one of its many forms is still the chief complaint. Skeletal
rickets we now treat always with red light preceding the ultra-violet,
having proved its added efficiency in this class.
Difficulties in dentition, between 8 and 18 months, sometimes
producing serious ill-health, have responded in a striking way to ultraviolet
exposures.
A few mothers, when pressed by their welfare doctors, have ventured
on giving us a trial themselves. They have all done extremely well and
have expressed their pleasure at the increased sense of well-being.
I should like many more mothers, when offered sunlight treatment
by their welfare doctors, to accept this. There must be numbers,
debilitated by frequent child-bearing, lactation and heavy home duties
who could avail themselves of the Light Clinics and the very real difficulty
W finding time 'for themselves' is met in every case by individual arrangements
with the Sister. Often short courses, 6, 8 or 15 exposures, will
do great good."