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93
The Pre-School Child.
The total number of such children referred from Welfare
Centres, Day Nurseries and other sources was 529 against 448
last year.
This further rise is encouraging, but dental supervision of
those between three and live years of age is still very incomplete,
and until this can be carried out on more systematic lines, far
too large a proportion will remain untreated.
The importance of inspection and care of these children
cannot be overstressed, as it is only when repairs are carried out
during the very early stages of the disease that undue loss of
deciduous teeth can be avoided. The introduction of nursery
classes at certain Primary Schools should materially assist in
reducing present deficiencies until such time as Nursery Schools
become an established fact.
The introduction of wider measures for ante-natal care, and
increased attention to the diet and nutrition of infants, is undoubtedly
producing beneficial results, and for several years past
a steady improvement has been noted by dental officers in the
calcification of the enamel of those entering school.
Confirmation of the above has recently appeared in a
report of Lady Mellanby's findings, following her examination
of certain groups of "five-year-old" L.C.C. children. The
following quotation from the summary of her report is interesting:
"The general dental health of the children examined in
1943 was much better than that of the 1929 group, and in 1945
there was a further appreciable improvement."
The actual figures for children found to be "almost" caries
free are represented as follows:—
1929 4.7 per cent.
1943 22.4
1945 26.5
Such statistics indicate a rise of 17.7 per cent. in those
showing " little decay " during the initial fourteen-year period,
plus an additional improvement of 4.1 per cent. in the subsequent
eighteen months.