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
Barking 1912
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Barking]
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49
Nose and Throat.
Again grouping all the age periods together the amount of defect revealed by the inspection during 1912 expressed as percentages of the number examined was:—
| Boys. | Girls. | |
|---|---|---|
| Nasal Obstruction | 17.69 | 13.89 |
| Enlarged Tonsils | 10.07 | 9.94 |
| Enlarged Glands of the Neck | 14.97 | 17.54 |
These figures are certainly very large and seem to suggest some amount of bias on the part of the observer. The figures for previous years are as follows:—
| Tonsils only. | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Seniors. | |||
| Infants. | Boys. | Girls. | |
| 1908 | 23.7 | 20.0 | 25.8 |
| 1909 | 15.6 | 13.1 | 14.5 |
| 1910 | 9.7 | 5.3 | 6.6 |
| 1911 | 9.6 | 5.6 | 10.8 |
| 1912 | 12.4 | 4.09 | 4.6 |
Eye Defects.
Taking all periods together for the past year, amongst the
boys 0.73 per cent. were found to be suffering from external eye
defects, such as inflammation of the lids or conjunctivae, 1.54
per cent. squinted, and in 6.26 per cent. one or both eyes were
defective.
Amongst the girls 0.84 per cent. suffered from external eye
defects, 1.59 per cent. squinted, and in 7.04 per cent the vision
was defective. Note.-- Any child unable to read 6/18—Snellen's
test type—in one or both eyes, is classed as being defective.