[Report 1933] / School Medical Officer of Health, Leeds City.

  • Leeds City Council
Date:
1933
Catalogue details

Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Credit: [Report 1933] / School Medical Officer of Health, Leeds City. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    profession, who base their schemes on the Handbooks on Health Education issued by the Board. This work is well done, even in the Babies’ Classes, where it must consist of very practical lessons. Formal lessons must be postponed until children can understand their meaning. Doctors and Dentists do use such time and opportunities as present themselves, and so do Nurses, but there is no organised system—nor is one possible. The teaching of Mothercraft to older girls is largely carried out by Nurses who were formerly on the staff but are now transferred entirely to the teaching side. Defects of Vision—Dr. Wood writes- In continuation of the research into the rate of increase of Myopia (short-sightedness), all available children, having this defect, have been re-examined. The average rate of increase in the degree of the defect in each eye in those children having no astigmatism during the years 1930, 1931, 1932, and 1933, has been calculated and is shown in the Table. This can only be done in those children whose vision has been tested two or more times. Observations during 1930-31-32-33. Age Number of Eyes Average Rate of Increase R L R L 6- 7 4- 41 •53 •50 7- 8 89 89 •49 •54 8- 9 223 226 ■49 ■5^ Q-IO 43i 430 •47 •49 10-11 44- 433 •44 •46 I I — I 2 379 377 •44 •43 12-13 278 280 •43 '44 13-M 103 103 ’35 •39 14 & over 19 18 ■39 •46 It will be noted that the number of right eyes differ from the number of left. This is due to some of the children having one short-sighted eye and one either normal, long-sighted, or astigmatic. Eyes with less than one dioptre of astigmatism have been considered as non-astigmatic. Where for any reason a myopic child’s vision has not been retested each year, the rate of increase has been assumed to be constant and an average taken over a period, i.e., a period of three Health Special Enquiries