More than a quarter of kids have tooth decay

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton MSP has today urged the SNP government to finally end the crisis in NHS dentistry after new figures revealed that more than a quarter of P1 pupils are suffering from tooth decay.

The National Dental Inspection Programme, published today, assesses how many P1 children have ‘obvious decay experience'- the sum of teeth which have decay into dentine, filled teeth and teeth that are missing due to decay.

It shows:

• 26.7% of P1 children had obvious tooth decay experience.
• In Fife, 35.5% of children had obvious decay experience, while in Greater Glasgow and Clyde, the number was 31.4%.
• An estimated 22.4% of P1 children had untreated decay.
• Child oral health inequalities remain with 60.1% of children living in the most deprived areas having no obvious decay experience, compared to 83.6% in the least deprived areas.

Mr Cole-Hamilton said:

“The SNP are leaving NHS dentistry to rot when far too many children are suffering from tooth decay.

“In huge parts of the country, there isn’t a single NHS dentist currently open to new patients. Toothcare should be like any other form of medical treatment; it should be readily available and close to home.

“Scottish Liberal Democrats were instrumental in introducing free dental checks and in pressing for a new dental school, but SNP ministers are unpicking all that good work.

“We need to end dental deserts and bring back local NHS dentists. That’s why my party want ministers to rewrite their failed NHS Recovery Plan, prioritise workforce planning and boost the number of dentists taking on NHS patients.”