DEADLY MOUTH BUGS ON UP IN DENTIST CRISIS
Half of us don’t have check-ups
MOUTH infections that lead to deadly sepsis are on the rise as around half the population no longer have dental check-ups.
The condition, previously unheard of, is being reported in areas where access to NHS dentists is restricted.
One doctor said his hospital is like a battlefield with dental emergencies.
A dentist in northern England said: “We’re seeing patients dying of toothache. We’ve never seen it before.
“One came into A&E, was intubated, but died of dental infection without regaining consciousness. It’s the result of access problems. Infections will claim more lives.”
Eddie Crouch, British Dental Association chair, said: “It’s the simple problems that end up as life-threatening. Official indifference to NHS dentistry has a body count.” Data on oral sepsis is hard to tease out due to the way NHS codes cases based on type of bacteria.
But mouth cancer killed over 3,000 people in 2021, up from 2,075 in 2011, data showed last year.
Paul Woodhouse, a dentist in Stockton-on-Tees, said: “Patients are delaying seeing us – for some it’s cost of living, for many it’s because our diary is rammed.”
The Mirror, which has launched a campaign to get dental access to all, reported data showing 100,000 children were admitted to hospital for tooth decay in five years. Last year 4.4 million, or 40% of children, had not seen an NHS dentist for 12 months.
And 22 million adults, 52% of the population, had not seen one in two years.
Real-terms government funding for NHS dentistry has been slashed in the last decade.
NHS England said: “The NHS is working hard to tackle the inevitable backlogs built up during the pandemic with dental activity up by more than a fifth last year compared to the year before.”