London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
View report page
Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
London County Council 1954
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]
This page requires JavaScript
A survey was held in eight representative surgeries in four health divisions; children
were dentally inspected, treatment required was noted and 2,190 children were referred
in the ordinary way for treatment. About six months later, as many of the same
children as were available (2,040) were re-inspected and the results were tabulated.
It was found that 51 per cent. had obtained treatment from the Council, 9.7 per cent.
from private sources, 1 per cent. from hospitals and 38.3 per cent. had received no
treatment, or only partial treatment. It is known that the same children do not from
year to year comprise the 50 per cent. who avail themselves of the Council's service,
a factor which makes proper dental care highly improbable for many individual
children. The proportion of children—38 per cent.—who apparently are dentally
neglected between inspections is disturbing and much requires to be done by personal
dental health education, enlargement of the Council's dental service and co-operation
with the dental profession elsewhere before much professional satisfaction can be
registered.
Table II gives figures for the year under review and comparison with the three preceding years.
Table II
| Attendances and treatments | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1951 | 1952 | 1953 | 1954 | |
| Number of inspection sessions held at schools | 441 | 584 | 1,448 | 2,056 |
| Number of children inspected at schools by dental officers | 46,473 | 59,677 | 153,293 | 199,041 |
| Number found to require treatment | 29,397 | 38,069 | 97,736 | 139,955 |
| Percentage requiring treatment | 63.2% | 63.8% | 63.8% | 70.3% |
| Additional number inspected at centres | 65,501 | 71,452 | 76,291 | 67,604 |
| Total number found to require treatment | 94,898 | 109,521 | 174,027 | 207,559 |
| Total cases treated | 82,564 | 93,823 | 116,499 | 129,712 |
| Attendances | 172,063 | 202,571 | 269,061 | 300,912 |
| Ordinary treatment sessions | 15,760 | 19,563 | 27,366 | 29,022 |
| General anaesthetic sessions | 1,516 | 1,494 | 1,725 | 1,939 |
| Temporary teeth extracted | 93,981 | 96,561 | 103,922 | 108,825 |
| Permanent teeth extracted | 15,850 | 17,283 | 19,727 | 21,095 |
| Temporary teeth restored by fillings | 21,684 | 26,353 | 37,787 | 46,256 |
| Permanent teeth restored by fillings | 54,356 | 66,680 | 92,576 | 112,226 |
| Fillings in temporary teeth | 24,206 | 27,556 | 40,120 | 49,148 |
| Fillings in permanent teeth | 60,568 | 72,369 | 102,178 | 124,974 |
| Other operations—temporary teeth | 39,523 | 45,985 | 59,863 | 65,280 |
| Other operations—permanent teeth | 28,199 | 30,291 | 44,250 | 57,086 |
| Local anaesthetics for extraction | 21,300 | 24,667 | 27,020 | 21,216 |
| Local anaesthetics for conservative treatment | 1,607 | 3,753 | 7,072 | 8,352 |
| General anaesthetics | 34,097 | 33,448 | 37,887 | 43,899 |
| Cases for whom immediate treatment was completed | 8,481* | 13,135 | 15,196 | 17,474 |
| Cases discharged as dentally fit | 40,369* | 63,638 | 81,488 | 86,957 |
In Table III, an encouraging factor is the progressive improvement in the ratio of
permanent teeth restored to permanent teeth extracted. This is considered to be symptomatic
of the improved quality of treatment given generally, consequent upon the
stabilised sessional case-load in operation more firmly throughout the year.
Table III
| 1946 | 4.2 to 1 |
| 1947 | 4.93 to 1 |
| 1948 | 4.58 to 1 |
| 1949 | 3.72 to 1 |
| 1950 | 3.29 to 1 |
| 1951 | 3.43 to 1 |
| 1952 | 3.86 to 1 |
| 1953 | 4.69 to 1 |
| 1954 | 5.32 to 1 |