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122 Medical Treatment.
New cases are referred to the School Oculist from
routine school medical inspection, from the Inspection
Clinic, from the Maternity and Child Welfare Centre,
and from the teachers at the request of parents.
In addition to the new cases, systematic re-examination
of old cases is carried on. During 1920 there were
813 such re-inspections made in following up children
previously examined in 1918 and 1919. The re-inspections
include all the children examined and treated in
1918 and 1919. The work has thus been brought well
up to date.
External Eye Diseases.—External diseases of the
eye, including inflammation of the eyelids, are very rare
amongst the school children of Ealing. Only eight
new cases were treated during the year and 45 old cases
re-inspected. This relative immunity from external
eye diseases is in keeping with the general good health
and hygienic conditions of the children.
Defective Vision.—The great bulk of the work consists
in investigating cases of defective vision depending
upon errors of refraction, and correcting these errors
by prescribing suitable glasses. In order to get the best
results, each child with defective vision pays four visits
to the School Oculist. At the first visit the vision is
tested in the ordinary way and noted. Atropine drops
to dilate the pupils are then instilled into the eyes for
four days, and at the second visit an examination is
made of the interior of the eyes, and the error of refraction
is estimated accurately by the shadow test, or
retinoscopy. At the third visit the vision is tested
with various lenses guided by the result of the previous
examination and the appropriate glasses to correct
the defect are prescribed, and at the fourth or final visit