§ Mr. Maddenasked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many specialist units are available under the National Health Service for neonates and premature babies.
§ Mr. Moyle:In March of this year there were 275 such units. For details I would refer my hon. Friend to my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Eccles (Mr. Carter-Jones) on 15th March—[Vol. 946, c. 212–22.]
§ Mr. Maddenasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what is the present cost to the National Health Service of monitoring devices for arterial oxygen levels in neonates, for the last full year for which figures are available.
§ Mr. Moyle:Monitoring equipment is bought by NHS authorities and there is no central record of such purchases.
70W
§ Mr. Maddenasked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many neonates suffer eye damage due to the lack of control over oxygen levels when they are in intensive care units.
§ Mr. Alfred Morris:The number of such babies is not known because the degree of visual defect is variable and the stage at which the defect becomes identifiable also varies.
In the year ending 31st March 1976, the number of children under 5 years of age in England who were newly registered as blind or partially sighted as a result of this condition—known as retrolental fibroplasia—was estimated to be about 14. This estimate was based on an analysis of about two-thirds of the new cases registered. It may have been an underestimate as registration may occur at a later age and, in some instances, may never occur at all.
I will write to my hon. Friend on this matter as soon as a comparable figure is available for the year ending 31st March 1977.