MORE than 300 patients have attended Cornwall hospitals over the past three years with issues attributed to tooth decay, according to a recent investigation.

Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust provides acute care and specialist health services across three main hospitals: Royal Cornwall Hospital (Treliske) in Truro, West Cornwall Hospital in Penzance, and St Michael’s Hospital in Hayle.

Figures show 308 patients were diagnosed with tooth decay during their spell at these hospitals since 2021 (source: Public Interest Lawyers).

In 2021/22, the figure stood at 92; a year later, it increased to 107, and the past year has seen another rise to 109.

The statistics have been interpreted as evidence of the impact of a dearth of NHS dental appointments. While regular check-ups help to avoid severe situations, with lengthy waiting lists and many dentists not taking on new patients, people are turning up to A&E in their tens of thousands.

Labour’s own analysis of patient survey data suggests 4.75 million people across England were denied an appointment with an NHS dentist in the past two years, because either no appointments were available or the practice they contacted was not taking on new patients.

Between April 2022 and May 2023, 30,000 children and more than 70,000 adults in England were admitted to A&E with tooth decay.

According to the BBC and the British Dental Association (BDA), 90% of dentists across the UK are not taking on new NHS adult patients, with many locations now considered to be “dental deserts” with no dentists taking on new patients.

Many refuse to see a child unless a parent is signed up as a private patient. Tooth decay is the biggest primary cause of NHS hospital admissions for children in England aged five to 17, as 40 per cent no longer have access to regular dental appointments. 

In Cornwall in 2021/22, there were six patients aged under 18, rising to 11 in 2023/24.

Ben Maguire, Liberal Democrat MP for North Cornwall, spoke in Parliament on the subject of NHS dentistry earlier this month. "Constituencies such as mine are some of the worst affected by dental deserts,” he said.

“One in five dentists has left Cornwall since 2019, and the number of urgent dental cases is spiralling out of control.

“I am not exaggerating when I say upset, distressed parents contact me every single day about their children’s rotting teeth. They cannot find NHS dentists, and they are at a complete loss.

“The House needs to come together and ensure that the problem of dental deserts is solved once and for all. What kind of society are we if we allow our children —indeed, people of all ages—to suffer like this?"