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43
M.D.
Insanity.
Suicide.
Epilepsy.
Alcohol.
Consumption.
Heart.
Cancer.
Delicate.
Poverty.
Syphilis.
Normal children—
Parents 2 — — — 6 3 2 2 14 4 ?
Family history — 7 2 6 1 36 8 13 — — ?
Mentally defective children—
Parents 34 2 2 3 42 13 3 — 18 40 6
Family history 3 29 5 8 7 53 10 8 — — 1
Whilst 65 per cent normal children have both parents normal in intelligence and physique, this
is only noted for 22 per cent, mentally deficient children, and some of the latter had parents debilitated
by poverty but organically sound.
Mental Deficiency.—34 per cent. of mentally deficient children have one parent mentally
deficient, i.e., obviously below the average in general intelligence, and although they had been to school
were unable to read and write at all or only very little. Two of these cases suffer from delusions and their
sanity is doubtful, 2 per cent more died insane, 2 per cent. committed suicide, 3 per cent. epileptic.
Alcoholism.—A definite history of drunkenness of one parent obtainable in 6 per cent. normal,
42 per cent. mentally deficient children.
Consumption.—2 per cent. of the normal and 13 per cent. mentally deficient children have one
parent in consumption, of the latter eight are already dead.
Family History.—Owing to the greater intelligence of the informants this can usually be obtained
further back and with greater completeness in the normal cases.
Especially more prevalent among the relations, not counting brothers and sisters of mentally
deficient children one finds consumption (53:32) and insanity (29:7).
Among normal children there are more case3 of death of relatives from old age, bronchitis,
heart failure, and also cancer.
The numbers in this enquiry were comparatively small, but the time required to obtain the facts
was considerable, and although another observer is making a similar enquiry, to eliminate the personal
equation, and to check these results it is evident that what may be termed "errors of experiment" can
scarcely come in here to such an extent as to vitiate, or even materially modify the general deductions
as to the very close associations of mental defect or drunkenness in the parents, with mental defect in
the child, and the prevalence in the family histories of such children of poverty, high infantile death
rates, phthisis, and insanity to a far greater degree than in the case of normal children in the same rank
of life.
PUBLIC PROVISION FOR MEDICAL TREATMENT OF CERTAIN
CHILDREN.
Apart from the question of cruelty arising out of the neglect of treatment for certain diseases,
such as the non-notifiable infectious diseases like ringworm and favus or trachoma, there are also some
chronic troubles, particularly certain eye affections and discharging ears which require remedy. In
addition, there is the whole subject of dental care, which applied during school life would profoundly
influence the public health, but which will always be unsatisfactory until actual dental treatment is
given in connection with the schools.
Favus is a very good illustrative disease to take. A certain number of cases attend hospital,
of which a very few are cured, some after a short attendance give up, or are said to be cured, and the
disease speedily relapses; others never have treatment and refuse to have it. The Favus School Nurse
reports a family of six. One attends the school, four other children are at present infected, and the
parents will not seek any treatment. The condition is simply neglected.
The disease was practically incurable till recently. It can now be cured by the use of the Rontgen
rays. The apparatus is costly and delicate. Its use requires expert knowledge, it can never become
general among medical men. The prevention of diffusion of favus is a duty of the Public Health
Department, and we are attempting this in the schools, but the provision of treatment for this disease
is essentially a public duty, and should not be left to private charities. The question is likely to
become acute in connection with the new Favus School, where about one-third of the children are
receiving no treatment.
Again, in the case of ringworm, present methods are dealing most superficially with the nuisance.
In spite of pressure no attempt is made to treat probably half of the cases known to the nurses.
Even if treated assiduously, many cases are exceedingly protracted. Here, again, the
Rontgen rays treatment is the most satisfactory method After a time with ordinary methods many
cases become chronic. The parents neglect them, and the dootors are glad to see the last of them.
The only logical course to pursue is either to neglect ringworm altogether or to provide public means
of treating it thoroughly. We require ringworm classes to be formed, to which all cases, after the lapse
of a certain time allowed for treatment and the chance of cure, should be sent on becoming chronic, and
12006 F 2