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55
From the foregoing facts it does not appear that
there has been an actual increase in the number of cases
of asthma or bronchitis.
The proportion of cases treated last year were as
follows:-
Asthmatics 50%
Bronchitics 32%
Chest deformities 14%
Others 4%
Follow- up cases 20
Control group (part) 12
Discharges 30
SCHOOL DENTAL SERVICE.
The general pattern of the dental service remains
much as reported in 1957. No further full-time Officers
have left, but there has been a rapid turnover of parttime
officers and the dental surgeon relatively inexperienced
in school dental clinic work always takes some
time to become fully productive. This, coupled with the
continued difficulty in securing dental attendants of a
suitable type, inevitably leads to a smaller output than
would be desirable.
From the results of school dental inspections it
would appear that a higher proportion of children attending
secondary schools receive private dental treatment
compared with infants and juniors. This is rather the
pattern that would be expected as by and large many parents
still do not realise the importance of dental attention
for the younger children, and also children of these ages
are not so desirable as private patients taking generally
more time for less return economically. But the valuable
contribution of private practitioners to the dental health
of children in the Borough must be acknowledged.
Parents are given prior notice of school dental inspections
and it is noteworthy that a considerable number of
children are always found to have made appointments for
treatment as a result of the "reminder'' of the proposed
inspection.
Attention has been drawn previously to the possibility
of the fluoridation of water supplies as a means of reducing
the incidence of dental caries. During the year we
became aware that in the Northolt district, served by the
Rickmansworth and Uxbridge Valley Water Company, water is