Fake dental kits a kick in the teeth

YOUR article ‘Dental kits destroyed’ (Gazette, February 11) reported that thousands of teeth-whitening kits with the potential to cause mouth blisters were seized from a house in this borough by Hillingdon Council’s Trading Standards, as the kits were suitable only for dental practices not for sales to consumers.

In the BBC1 documentary Fake Britain, it has been reported that dangerous X-ray machines from China, which emit harmful x-rays both to the patient and the dentist operating the machine, had been bought by some dental practices in the UK. The fake dental X-ray machines do not have the lead protection inside, so the patient’s whole face is exposed to radiation and the operator’s hands & body receive X-rays, which can cause cancer.

The thyroid gland is particularly damaged by radiation.

The programme stated that all kinds of dangerous fake dental instruments are being sold to dental practices, including drills, which could explode in a patient’s mouth while being used. The results of this could be horrific.

Why are these not being prevented from entering the country? Some fakes have been bought by dentists from a website which gave the appearance of being British, but was a Chinese website.

The counterfeit drills come with a faked safety certificate and CE mark.

I hope the authorities are checking dental practices’ equipment for dangerous fakes in case dentists have inadvertently bought them.