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25
"A more cheerful feature revealed during the year's inspections
is a definite diminution in the number of really septic mouths
among the older children. I fear that this has been effected more
by the removal of badly infected teeth than by the restoration of
slightly infected ones.
"There is now little objection on the part of either parents or
children to the extraction of septic teeth, but much prejudice still
remains against conservative treatment. This may partly be
explained by the certainty of the first compared with the relative
uncertainty of the second. There is also the practical certainty
that extraction will involve no pain, and an uncertainty of the
amount of pain involved in the filling of a tooth.
"It., therefore, cannot be too strongly stressed that the certainty
of the cure of a diseased tooth is in inverse ratio to the extent of
its decay, but the amount of discomfort involved by its restoration
is directly in proportion.
"The dental staff has examined 12,466 children. This represents
the number required fully to occupy the time of the whole
staff, leaving 4,799 to whom it was impossible to offer inspection
and treatment. In fact, it became impossible to provide inspection
and treatment more often than once in eighteen months. This
period is quite sufficient to convert thousands of easily saveable
teeth into doubtfully saveable or unsaveable ones.
"This interval of eighteen months is far too long to cope with
the present incidence of dental disease.
"Even the annual re-examination recommended by the Board
of Education is, in my opinion, insufficient to do so.
"In support of this opinion I can instance many cases of
secondary school children who, left dentally sound twelve months
ago, are found on re-examination to present extensive carious
conditions.
"Upon the credit side of this summary it may be noted that
it has not been found necessary to extract quite so many badly
decayed teeth as in the previous year. Also, 3,093 "other operations"
have been completed against 1,819 last year. The majority
of these operations are of a conservative nature and are, therefore,
desirable in a preventive scheme.
"Indeed, these figures of "other operations" and those of the
fillings are an index of the policy which the dental service is
endeavouring to pursue, i.e., the preservation of the permanent