Tooth decay leading reason for children being hospitalised

Almost 8,000 children in Wales had to be admitted to hospital to have teeth extracted under general anaesthetic.

Cwm Taf University Health Board has launched a campaign to improve the oral health of young children.

The ‘Baby Teeth Do Matter’ campaign aims to raise awareness throughout the two areas of the importance of children adopting healthy dental habits early on to prevent tooth decay.

Dental surveys are conducted to assess the oral health of children when they are three, five and 12 years of age. The latest survey shows that 58.6 per cent of five-year-old children living in Merthyr Tydfil and 43 per cent living in Rhondda Cynon Taf have dental decay. 60% of children in those areas under five years of age haven’t visited a dentist, and almost 80 per cent of children under two years of age haven’t yet visited a dentist.

The Health Board has provided tips on how to prevent tooth decay.

A spokesman from the Cwm Taf University Health Board said: “Many people think that baby teeth don't matter because the teeth are going to fall out anyway and be replaced with a second set, but they do matter.

“Baby teeth are very important to a child's health and development. When baby teeth are lost too early then the guide for the permanent teeth is lost and the space available for the second teeth can be reduced. This can make permanent teeth crooked or crowded.

“Having poor oral health can affect children's ability to eat, sleep, speak, can lead to pain and infection and being admitted to hospital for general anaesthetic.”

Christopher Jones, chairman of the Cwm Taf University Health Board, added: “We want to increase the number of children who visit a dentist for routine dental check ups, reduce the levels of dental decay in our children and reduce the number of children being admitted to hospital to have their teeth extracted under general anaesthetic.”

A Welsh government spokesperson said: “Looking after teeth needs to start as soon as they appear in a baby’s mouth. We know tooth decay starts early and in some parts of Wales, one in four three-year-olds have decayed teeth.

“The proportion of 5 year old children with poor dental health in Wales is continuing to fall, with children from the most deprived backgrounds seeing the biggest reduction in tooth decay over the last decade. Our Designed to Smile programme is making a real impact in improving the oral health of children across Wales. It has recently been revamped and will now include more help for babies, very young children and their parents to ensure the positive progress made so far continues in the future.

“The Baby Teeth Do Matter campaign sits well alongside Designed to Smile and we welcome this initiative by the health board.”