MORE than nine in 10 dentists in the United Kingdom say the lockdown has worsened oral health.
The significant majority of dental professionals (96 percent) believe the lockdown has negatively impacted the UK’s oral health, according to a survey carried out by mydentist.co among clinicians across more than 600 dental practices.
(M)ydentist describes itself as Europe’s largest dental care provider with over five million customers in the United Kingdom.
It says dental professionals are now calling for greater access to affordable dental care.
The survey found that 88 percent of dental professionals believe the UK’s dental health could decline because of a lack of routine appointments, leading to worsened dental issues that could have been prevented.
Some 77 percent are worried the lockdown means serious health issues such as oral cancers will be missed and, as a result, not referred to the appropriate health care professional. Mouth cancers are often detected first by dentists who then refer patients to oncologists or cancer specialists.
Six of 10 or 60 percent of survey participants believe that during lockdowns certain patients could delay trips to the dentist to treat minor symptoms, for example toothache and bleeding gums. This could lead to larger problems in the long term.
Four in 10 or 41 percent believe it will take between one year and 18 months for the UK’s oral health to recover.
One in 10 or 12 percent predicts it will take at least two years for the UK’s oral health to return to pre-pandemic levels.
An alarming number, to me, is the 75 percent of those surveyed who reported troubles in recruiting enough dentists to meet public demand.
Now let me pause here for a while and ponder on the situation in the Philippines. Because of the pandemic and the strict protocols prescribed by the Philippine Dental Association, and rightly so, many dental clinics have not reopened after lockdown restrictions were lifted this summer.
The safety protocols are meant to protect the patient, the dentist and the dental staff. The protocols are standard in most if not all countries.
Because of the virus, our dental manpower, already stretched even before the pandemic, will be sorely lacking especially in the provinces and in remote areas.
We do not know the exact numbers of dental clinics not reopening. What we know is, because only dental emergencies are encouraged at this time, regular cleanings usually done in dental clinics have been postponed or delayed. The same is true for other procedures such as those that involve tooth decay and toothache and even regular check-ups.
Having said that, here’s what Nyree Whitley, Group Clinical Director at mydentist has to say about the situation in the UK:
“Temporarily suspending routine dentistry during the pandemic was absolutely the right thing to do. This helped to protect patients and colleagues and to help stop the spread of the virus.
“But it came at a cost and it will be felt by both the profession and patients for several years to come.
“As our research shows, we’ve got a long journey ahead of us – particularly since access to affordable dentistry was limited before the pandemic.
“We’ve worked hard to reopen as quickly and as safely as possible to help get the nation’s dental health back on track. But we need an urgent review of access to dentistry to ensure no patient misses out.”
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Dr. Joseph D. Lim is the former Associate Dean of the University of the East College of Dentistry, former Dean of the College of Dentistry, National University, past president and honorary fellow of the Asian Oral Implant Academy, and honorary fellow of the Japan College of Oral Implantologists. Honorary Life Member of Thai Association of Dental Implantology. For questions on dental health, e-mail jdlim2008@gmail.com or text 0917-8591515./PN
