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97
ORTHOPAEDIC CLINIC.
This special clinic is held on two sessions a month, but
owing to the difficulty of transport and other reasons, and to
the large number of cases referred, it was found convenient to
hold one session a month at the North Clinic with two specialists
in attendance.
Associated with the specialist, and on his advice, cases are
referred to the massage and remedial clinic which is held at the
North Clinic under Miss M. Dodge on five sessions a week. The
clinic is not limited to school children but provides also for
children under school age. It is obviously important to remedy
defects as early as possible. The clinic is held in co-operation
with the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital to which are
referred all cases for in-patient treatment.
Statistics: —
New cases seen, 155.
Total attendance, 452.
Attendances for massage, etc., 2,025.
Attendances for U.V.R., 2,325.
Or this work Mr. Cholmeley reports:—
''It is perhaps interesting, at least from the statistical and
administrative points of view, to note that the figures for 1945
and 1946 of new cases examined are almost identical, although
there has been an increase in the total attendances at surgeons
sessions; possibly this increase is due to the fact that during the
latter part of 1946 I was able to bring an assistant with me so
that there is now no appreciable waiting list of new cases to
be seen.
"In the 1944 and 1945 statistics your office sub-divided
certain of the headings so that, for example, it was easy to
determine how many of the congenital defects were of major
importance; this was not done for 1946. The total figures for
congenital defects is almost identical during the past three
years, and I think it is more than likely that, as before, the
majority of them have been quite minor—such as crooked toes;
with regard to other points in the table of new cases there is the
usual number of non-rachitic bow legs and knees, most of which
will be cases of knock knee, occurring in children of 3 to 4
years of age, but, which arise in the normal course of development,
and usually clear up completely within the first few years
of school life.