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CONTROL OF VERMIN AND SCABIES
By the courtesy of the School Medical Officer particulars
regarding the cleanliness surveys in schools have been obtained and
are as follows:-
Number of children examined:-
Primary Schools 13,857
Secondary Modern Schools 4,245
18,082
Number of children requiring treatment 149
Number of children in respect of whom cleansing
notices were issued 79
Number of children cleansed by Local Health
Authority 40
There was an increase of over 3,000 in the number of
cleanliness inspections but a drop in the number of children who had
become infested with head lice, from 158 in 1951 to 149 in 1952.
There is a continuing improvement in these figures but it is noted
that 40 children required cleansing by the Local Health Authority as
compared with 20 in 1951, which suggests that the number of more
severe infections was greater.
During the year, applications were received for the cleansing of
3 persons who had become infested with Scabies, one of the persons
also being verminous. The treatment was carried out at Hammersmith
Cleansing Station with the kind co-operation of the Medical Officer
of Health of Hammersmith.
INFECTIOUS DISEASES
The fall in the total number of notifications during 1952
resulted from the lower incidence of measles and whooping cough.
Measles is known to have a biennial fluctuation and this was the
year when figures would be expected to drop, but 413 is still a
considerable number and the increasing flow of notifications in
December gave evidence of the commencement of an early high wave of
epidemic measles. There were no deaths from measles.
Poliomyelitis
10 notifications of poliomyelitis were received during the year.
Of these, 1 was not confirmed as poliomyelitis, 1 was non-paralytic,
2 died in hospital, and 6 suffered some degree of paralysis.
Up to date information regarding these cases and those
poliomyelitis cases noted in previous years as still showing residual
paralysis is as follows.
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