Hospitalisations for dental abscesses double

I wasn’t going to blog today, but a news item on the radio spurred me into action.

The BBC is reporting that long-standing problems over access to NHS dentists in England are linked to the number of hospital admissions for abscesses nearly doubling in eight years to just under 1,500 a year.

Bristol University researchers analysed NHS data and found there were 750 admissions in 1998-9, but by 2005-6 that had risen to 1,431.

The team dismissed the suggestion that poorer oral health was to blame, pointing out the average age of the patients, at 32, was too young to support that theory.

Instead, the researchers said changes to the dental system could be the cause, as access to dental care was an issue even before the most recent change to dental working practices in 2006.

And I can say for certain that it’s not just in England that poor or non-existent access to dentists is causing major long-term dental health issues.

I’ve now had a dental abscess for two years and five months.

I tried to get a dentist’s appointment as soon as the abscess first occurred in December 2005, but had to wait several weeks to be seen.

The dentist told me the abscess was not sufficiently serious to warrant being drained, prescribed me antibiotics and sent me away.

After that, I was sporadically seen and prescribed mainly anti-bacterials, and occasionally antibiotics.

 

Only when the abscess spread to a second tooth did the dentist decide, in January 2007, it was finally serious enough warrant immediate incision, draining and a place on the waiting list for root canal treatment.

 

Of course, I still had to wait and it was not until 20 April 2007 that the dentist started the first of three sessions of root canal treatment.

On my next visit, on 27 April 2007, the dentist started umming and ahhing, with all becoming clear on my final visit on 4 May - apparently the work on my teeth was beyond her skills and facilities so she said I’

d have to go private (at a cost of about £2,000 or almost US$4,000).

When I said I couldn’t go private, she said I’

d have to be referred to the Maxillofacial Unit at Aberdeen Royal Infirmany - and that would involve a lengthy wait.

So it proved to be.

I’d phone up every month or so, and be told to wait my turn by terse, abrupt and even outright rude NHS staff. Throughout this time I received no medication as I’d been referred to the consultant and I was no longer the dentist’s problem.

I saw four different GPs over the year in a bid to get antibiotics to counter the increasingly severe symptoms—headaches, vision problems, facial swelling, dizziness, diarrohea, and confusion—

but all were reluctant to treat a dental problem.

Finally, I saw a dental consultant in December 2007 who told me the abscess was now too serious for root canal treatment.

He also observed that my symptoms were indicative of a chronic, major infection (and was shocked to learn that I’ve incised and drained the abscess twice myself using veterinary instruments).

Despite all that, the consultant provided neither treatment nor a prescription for antibiotics and referred me back to the dentist, telling me that someone would be in touch in due course to arrange my next appointment.

That was five months ago and, yes, I’m still waiting for my next appointment.

I’ve now enjoyed a magnificent 823 days of painful symptoms while I wait for the wonderful Scottish NHS to process me through its labyrinthine bureacracy.

And before anyone dashes off a comment about complaining, contacting MSPs/MPs and the media, I can confidently say they don’t give “a rat’s *****”.

As today’s BBC report puts it “the government said recent reforms were aimed at improving the situation”.

Total and utter rubbish. Government changes (I include both the UK Government and the pathetic Scottish Executive) have brought about the situation and make it worse.

The media barely regards the dental situation as newsworthy, unless some researchers come out with a shock, horror story, and if you complain one of two things happen—

you get struck off you dentist’s patient list or all details of everything you’ve ever said or written mysteriously vanish into some buraucrat’s bulging butt cheeks.

Yes, I’m feeling grumpy—

again.

Anyway, is it any surprise that the number of people being hospitalised for dental abscesses is rocketing when no one can be bothered to treat them properly in the first place?

I strongly suspect that if my abscess had been incised, drained and treated with antiobiotics two years and five months ago, then I’d be, if not a grumpy person, at least a healthy, grumpy person!!

- - - - -

Previous posts on this subject:

Pillar to post and back again 17 December 2007

Time for a challenge 3 December 2007

A dental appointment at last! 5 November 2007

Doing your own dentistry 15 October 2007

It’s one of those days 4 April 2007

Worn out 23 March 2007

Still not at my best 17 January 2007

And no, the abscess was not caused by poor dental hygiene on my part. It was caused by my immune system deciding my tooth (and later teeth) were the enemy.