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 1949
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]
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Examinations by the Council's Ophthalmologists
| Classification | Certified blind | Not blind | Grand total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male | Female | Total | Male | Female | Total | ||
| New cases | 281* | 466* | 747* | 66 | 138 | 204 | 951* |
| Previously blind, still blind | 19 | 17 | 36 | — | — | — | 36 |
| Previously not blind, now certified | 15 | 23 | 38 | – | – | – | 38 |
| Previously not blind, still not blind | – | – | _ | 20 | 26 | 46 | 46 |
| Previously blind, now not blind | — | — | — | 9 | 4 | 13 | 13 |
| Total | 315* | 506* | 821* | 95 | 168 | 263 | 1,084* |
*These figures include 17 male and 10 female children under 5 years of age but do not include children of
school age, details of whom are included in the table on page 133.
The standards used are those prescribed by the Ministry of Health (Circular 1353-5.10.33). The reason
in the majority of cases "previously blind, now not blind" is that cataracts have been removed
surgically.
In addition 208 certificates were accepted from other authorities, hospitals and
private ophthalmologists as follows:—
Blind persons 201 (94 male, 107 female)
Not blind persons 7 (4 male, 3 female)
The causes of blindness in the 27 children under five years of age who were
certified during the year were:—
| Retrolental fibroplasia | 12 |
| Optic atrophy | 5 |
| Microphthalmos | 3 |
| Colobomata | 2 |
| Cataract | 2 |
| Glioma | 1 |
| Buphthalmos | 1 |
| Corneal dystrophy | 1 |
The number of partially-sighted persons, excluding children, recommended for
inclusion in the Observation Register was 203 (71 male, 132 female).
Blind persons examined as to suitability for training and the results were :—
| Male | Female | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Suitable for training | 25 | 8 | 33 |
| Not suitable for training | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Totals | 26 | 9 | 35 |
At the end of the year 58 nursing homes on the register were functioning
compared with 62 registered homes open at the end of 1948. Four new registrations
of homes took place and 8 homes were closed during the year. In the 58 homes
there were 1,023 beds distributed as follows:
| Number of beds in home | Number of homes | Type of patient accommodated | Total | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maternity only | Maternity and others | Others | |||
| 25 or over | 7 | - | 233 | 139 | 372 |
| 20 to 24 | 11 | 21 | 36 | 179 | 236 |
| 15 to 19 | 9 | 17 | 56 | 78 | 151 |
| 10 to 14 | 13 | - | 40 | 108 | 148 |
| 5 to 9 | 14 | - | 63 | 44 | 107 |
| Under 5 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 9 |
| Total | 58 | 39 | 430 | 554 | 1,023 |