Child tooth removal ‘at crisis point’

Did anyone see, or hear, the BBC report this week, which revealed that doctors are calling for urgent action to reduce the number of children needing to have rotten teeth removed under general anaesthetic in hospital?Nearly 26,000 children, aged five to nine were admitted to hospital in England in 2013-14. A number that was up 14% from 2011 claimed the report and the Royal College of Surgeons says many hospitals are reaching ’crisis point’ managing the number of children.All pretty scary stuff. But is the situation really as frightening as the radio and TV reports implied?Our observations at Carisbrook Dental (and as one of the emergency dentists Manchester specialists we do get to see a pretty clear picture of children’s dental health in our region) don’t fully support the worries that were published.It does reinforce however, the message that we have been promoting for a number of years and that is that it is never to soon to teach your children the benefits of good dental health practices and to introduce them to a dentist as early as possible.Yes, we also agree that there are far too many sugary drinks and sweet treats that children quite naturally enjoy and can become almost addicted to. We also advocate that parents should ration these ‘treats’ (or should it be threats) limiting them to infrequent short bursts of sugar attack, preferably at mealtimes, and also teaching them to clean their teeth regularly and thoroughly.In fact we believe so strongly in educating children and their parents in the necessities of good dental health that we even have a special Children page on this website that provides valuable information and helpful advice.We actually believe that overall children’s dental health has improved over the past decade, but there is one point highlighted in the report that we definitely agree with. It says, ‘some people are having to wait six months to access the service, some even up to one year. During that time that child will be in pain, suffering and perhaps having repeated antibiotics. All of this is unacceptable.’Not at Carisbrook it doesn’t! The advantage of choosing a private practice such as Carisbrook Dental rather than an NHS dentist is that you can get access to a top dentist without delay. Our dentists also have more time to devote to each young patient and in addition to spotting and preventing problems early; they can also pass on lots of sound, professional advice including tips to ensure good all-round and on-going dental health.If your children have problems with crooked or misaligned teeth then our specialist Orthodontics Manchester team is also able to help.So the message is, by all means take notice of reports such as the BBC’s, but don’t become over-alarmed and our best advice is to contact a dentist such as Carisbrook Dental and arrange for your children to be seen by a dentist and to have regular follow up examinations.Making an appointment is simple, just call us on 0161 951 7295 or reach us via our Contact page.