Our children’s teeth left to rot in dental crisis

TENS of thousands of children could be suffering with rotting teeth – with the number of extractions in hospital having dropped by more than half during the Covid pandemic.

Procedures for youngsters up to the age of 19 hit an all-time low in 2020-21, with 35,000 fewer taking place compared with the previous year – a drop of 55 per cent.

Only 22,549 hospital extractions, which are carried out under general anaesthetic, took place in 2020-21 compared with 55,137 the year before, according to data from the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities.

Directors of public health at councils are concerned that the dramatic reduction suggests many extractions that would have happened during the pandemic were delayed or cancelled – compounding the crisis is NHS dentistry.

The Local Government Association is urging the Government to use the Autumn Statement to provide long-term funding for public health services, including supporting dental hygiene among school age children to take pressure away from an already overstretched system.

David Fothergill, of the LGA, said: ‘It is alarming that there may be children whose teeth are being left to rot as hospitals work through a growing backlog of procedures. It is deeply worrying that the type of dental treatment required is beyond the capacity of a local dentist due to the severity of the decay...’

Eddie Crouch, of the British Dental Association, said: ‘The Prime Minister... and his Chancellor have the power to bring this service back from the brink or condemn it to oblivion.’ The Department of Health said: ‘We are committed to levelling up dental health across the country.’