Dozens of Bedford children had rotting teeth removed last year

Dozens of Bedford children had rotting teeth removed last year, new figures show.

Data from the Government’s Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID) shows a significant increase in hospitals removing under-19 year olds' decaying teeth across England following the coronavirus pandemic.

But total extractions remain below pre-pandemic levels, and the British Dental Association (BDA) said the data "understates the level of demand, given huge backlogs and only partial recovery of elective services".

The OHID figures show around 30 children aged 19 or younger in Bedford had at least one tooth removed in hospital due to decay in the 12 months to March 2022 – up from around 10 the year before and 15 in 2019-20, before the pandemic.

It meant around 66 in every 100,000 children underwent a tooth extraction for decay last year.

A total of 140 extractions were undertaken in the area, meaning decay accounted for 21% of all procedures.

Tooth decay is the most common reason for hospital admission in children aged six to 10, while the data also showed children living in the most deprived communities are around 3.5 times more likely to have teeth out due to decay than those in the most affluent areas.

The BDA said it was "deeply concerned that ongoing and severe access problems, together with disruption to public health programmes and lockdown diets", will widen inequalities.

It said the Government is "failing to deliver on much-needed reform and investment", highlighting issues in the recruitment and retention of dentists.

Eddie Crouch, chairman of the BDA, added: "Tooth decay is still going unchallenged as the number one reason for hospital admissions among young children.

"This Government needs to be willing to take off the gloves when it comes to fighting a wholly preventable disease."

A Department for Health and Social Care spokesperson said: "Good oral health is incredibly important and the number of children seen by NHS dentists increased by 44% in the last year.

"Likewise in hospitals, we have seen an increase in hospital operations for tooth extraction for those aged 0-19 as oral healthcare services continue to recover from the pandemic.

"The number of dentists increased by over 500 last year and the government is investing more than £3 billion in NHS dentistry."