HEALTH chiefs in Southampton are joining forces to discover why rickets has returned to the city.

As reported in yesterday’s Daily Echo the crippling bone disease has made a comeback with children across the city being diagnosed, more than 80 years after it disappeared.

Now the city’s top doctors, who have been shocked by the comeback, are working together to find out why the scourge of Victorian England has been able to resurface in the 21st century.

NHS Southampton City’s public health team is collaborating with experts at Southampton University Hospitals NHS Trust on further research to find the root of the problem.

Professor Nicholas Clarke, from Southampton General Hospital, has seen more than 40 cases of rickets in children over the past 12 months.

Historically the disease, which causes children’s bones to become weak and bowed, was linked to poverty- stricken communities, especially during the reign of Queen Victoria.

It is triggered by a vitamin D deficiency, caused by a poor diet or lack of sun exposure, endemic during the industrial revolution when working class children were living in smogfilled cities and spending most of their time cramped in workhouses.

But health experts in the city are finding youngsters from all backgrounds are contracting the disease.

It is believed children’s obsession with computer games and watching television is a major cause of the rise in cases.

Dr Andrew Mortimore, public health director for NHS Southampton City, said: “We are concerned that vitamin D deficiency is on the rise locally and that there have been a number of rickets cases in the city.

“NHS Southampton City’s Public Health Team is working with experts at Southampton University Hospitals NHS Trust and the Medical Research Council on research to determine why some children are experiencing problems with vitamin D deficiency.”

The disease largely disappeared in 1928 but cases have been on the rise in recent years, especially in poorer countries and made a return to northern parts of the UK earlier this year.

Parents are advised to feed their children food, which is rich in vitamin D, including salmon, tuna, egg yolks and cheese.

Dr Mortimer added: “We can all improve our vitamin D levels through a balanced lifestyle, including a safe amount of sun exposure and a varied diet.”