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 1962
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]
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Defects noted at routine medical inspections—The overall percentage of children referred
for treatment of a defect was 12.6 in 1962 compared with 12.3 in 1961. The comparative
percentages for sex and age are shown in the following table. The percentage referred for
vision defects has increased from 6.6 in 1960 to 7.1 in 1962; for other defects it has increased
slightly from 5.8 in 1961 to 6 0 in 1962. The increase in vision defect is mainly confined to
the girls and is particularly evident in the 12-, 13- and 14-year old age groups. Vision
defects are dealt with in more detail in a later paragraph.
For all defects in the age groups containing the largest numbers (viz. 5, 8, 12 and 15)
a marked increase over the 1961 figures was apparent in boys and girls aged 12 and a less
marked one in girls aged 15 and over; for the 12-year old boys and girls aged 15 and over
this was attributable solely to an increase in vision defects; whereas for the 12-year old
girls this was caused by an increase both in vision defects and, to a lesser extent, in defects
other than vision.
| Age and sex | All defects | Vision defects | Defects other than vision | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 1961 | 1962 | 1960 | 1961 | 1962 | 1960 | 1961 | 1962 | ||
| 4 and less | Boys | 9.6 | 9.3 | 8.6 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 0.3 | 9.3 | 9.0 | 8.3 |
| Girls | 8.3 | 7.6 | 7.9 | 0.3 | 0.4 | 0.3 | 8.0 | 7.3 | 7.6 | |
| 5 | Boys | 9.2 | 8.6 | 8.6 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.8 | 8.7 | 8.2 | 8.0 |
| Girls | 7.9 | 7.5 | 7.9 | 0.7 | 0.7 | 0.9 | 7.3 | 6.9 | 7.1 | |
| 6 | Boys | 12.5 | 11.8 | 11.3 | 2.1 | 1.3 | 1.6 | 10.8 | 10.8 | 9.8 |
| Girls | 10.7 | 9.4 | 9.5 | 2.0 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 9.0 | 7.9 | 8.3 | |
| 7 | Boys | 15.2 | 15.4 | 15.0 | 6.6 | 7.0 | 6.4 | 9.2 | 9.0 | 9.4 |
| Girls | 150 | 13.9 | 14.1 | 7.6 | 7.2 | 7.4 | 8.2 | 7.2 | 7.5 | |
| 8 | Boys | 140 | 13.5 | 13.7 | 7.2 | 7.0 | 7.0 | 7.5 | 7.0 | 7.3 |
| Girls | 13.5 | 12.8 | 12.4 | 7.3 | 7.5 | 7.0 | 6.7 | 5.9 | 6.0 | |
| 9 | Boys | 13.7 | 14.0 | 14.3 | 7.3 | 7.1 | 6.4 | 7.1 | 7.9 | 8.4 |
| Girls | 13.3 | 14.0 | 14.1 | 7.5 | 8.1 | 7.9 | 6.2 | 6.3 | 7.0 | |
| 10 | Boys | 16.0 | 15.5 | 15.4 | 8.7 | 8.9 | 7.0 | 7.8 | 7.4 | 9.3 |
| Girls | 15.5 | 14.2 | 14.9 | 9.0 | 9.4 | 8.7 | 7.4 | 5.7 | 6.7 | |
| 11 | Boys | 13.3 | 12.8 | 12.4 | 9.1 | 8.4 | 8.1 | 4.6 | 4.8 | 4.9 |
| Girls | 17.3 | 16.4 | 17.2 | 11.3 | 11.6 | 12.1 | 6.9 | 5.4 | 6.0 | |
| 12 | Boys | 130 | 13.4 | 14.3 | 8.3 | 8.8 | 9.8 | 5.2 | 5.1 | 5.1 |
| Girls | 15.3 | 15.4 | 17.2 | 9.8 | 10.4 | 11.4 | 6.2 | 5.8 | 6.6 | |
| 13 | Boys | 13.4 | 12.0 | 13.0 | 8.7 | 8.5 | 8.8 | 5.2 | 3.9 | 4.7 |
| Girls | 16.3 | 15.0 | 17.5 | 11.0 | 10.7 | 11.9 | 6.2 | 4.9 | 6.6 | |
| 14 | Boys | 12.1 | 12.1 | 11.7 | 8.9 | 9.4 | 9.0 | 3.5 | 3.1 | 2.9 |
| Girls | 13.2 | 14.5 | 15.5 | 10.2 | 10.7 | 12.2 | 3.7 | 4.6 | 4.0 | |
| 15 and over | Boys | 11.4 | 12.2 | 11.8 | 8.9 | 9.7 | 9.5 | 2.8 | 2.9 | 2.6 |
| Girls | 14.3 | 14.3 | 14.9 | 10.7 | 11.6 | 12.1 | 4.2 | 3.3 | 3.3 | |
| Total | Boys | 12.1 | 12.0 | 12.0 | 6.1 | 6.4 | 6.4 | 6.3 | 6.0 | 6.0 |
| Girls | 12.9 | 12.6 | 13.2 | 7.1 | 7.5 | 7.8 | 6.4 | 5.6 | 5.9 | |
| Total | Both sexes | 12.5 | 12.3 | 12.6 | 6.6 | 6.9 | 7.1 | 6.3 | 5.8 | 6.0 |
note: A child can be noted as requiring treatment of vision and another defect, hence the percentage requiring
vision treatment plus the percentage requiring treatment of other defects exceeds the percentage referred for
treatment of all defects.
The following table shows the percentage of children of all ages noted for treatment or
observation of the defects listed for the years 1960 to 1962. These percentages remain
fairly stable over the period. Enlarged tonsils and adenoids, orthopaedic defects and external
eye diseases all show a continued decline. Defective hearing and enuresis have increased
over the last year.
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