
A new study found that children in deprived areas were three times more likely to have severe tooth decay resulting in extractions under general anaesthetic.
One in 200 children in the study had at least one tooth removed under general anaesthetic within five years. Most of these participants had multiple teeth removed during the study period.
Children from certain ethnic groups also had a higher likelihood of tooth extractions compared to those considered White British. For example:
- White Irish – twice as likely
- Pakistani – four times as likely
- Bangladeshi – five times as likely.
Researchers from Queen Mary University reached these findings by analysing anonymised GP and hospital records from more than 600,000 children. All participants were between the ages of five and 16, living in north-east London. Deprived areas were defined as those with the highest proportion of low-income households.
‘Urgent need for equitable access to preventive general dental services’
The researchers said the findings highlight ‘major socioeconomic and ethnic inequalities in severe tooth decay in children’.
Nicola Firman is a health data scientist at Queen Mary and lead author of the study. She said: ‘Linking health data from different settings has allowed us to see inequalities in the dental care system more clearly.
‘Our findings point to an urgent need for equitable access to preventive general dental services, and interventions that are targeted at the wider determinants of dental health.’
Co-author Vanessa Muirhead added: ‘Tooth extractions are a last resort, but when families have difficulty accessing timely preventive and treatment services, dental problems can progress until children need more serious and costly interventions such as multiple tooth extractions under general anaesthesia.’
‘Major inequalities linked to severe tooth decay’
The research was funded by a grant from Barts Charity. Victoria King, director of funding and impact at the charity, said: ‘This important work, supported by Barts Charity, has demonstrated that there are major inequalities linked to severe tooth decay for children in east London, which could be preventable. Supporting research to understand these health inequalities is key to making better healthcare possible for our diverse east London population.’
Earlier in the year, the Queen Mary Institute of Dentistry opened a new dental outreach clinic in Homerton in partnership with Barts Health NHS Trust. Christopher Tredwin, dean of the Institute of Dentistry, said the clinic is already providing ‘quicker and easier access to dental care’.
He continued: ‘Through the outstanding work of our students at these clinics, we hope to mitigate the effects of unequal access to general dentistry in north east London and help to provide care for those who need it most.’
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