The increasing number of children had to be accepted in the hospital to remove teeth, while thousands of more long and painful waiting.
The number of young people undergoing tooth decay has increased to each of the last four years from 2,584 in 2020/21 to 5,372 in 2023/24.
However, despite the huge amount, the number of children waiting for dental surgery in the hospital has also increased to 3,559 in December 2024 – the latest data to date.
The majority of them are believed to be children who need a large number of teeth who have been removed or have conditions, such as autism, this means that they cannot be treated in dental practices.
The huge delay comes in the midst of evidence that some children in Scotland are waiting for more than a year and a half to see it.
Dentists are frightened, they are struggling to secure a long time in hospital theaters across the country to start making a dent on the swollen waiting lists.
Charlotte Waite, director of the British Scottish Dental Union, said: “Children who sometimes face the time waiting for extracts need priority and should not remain in the back of the tail for the theater.
“The demand for these processes never went anywhere. What we see is significant delays that are fueled by issues of capacity and expanding inequality, which means that more children who are fighting for food, sleep and learn. “
Increasing numbers of children have been removed from their teeth in the hospital
Charlotte Waite, director of the British Scottish Union, said the delay will let young people fight to eat, sleep and learn
Scottish Labor Health Jackie Baillie MSP spokesman said: “These shocking elements expose the rotten SNP record to dentistry.
“The NHS dental in Scotland is struggling for survival as a result of SNP mismanagement and these are the shameful consequences.
“SNP must accelerate, delay and up to the pace of procedures to ensure that every child in Scotland has access to the dental care they need.”
Evidence shows that the number of patients awaited by the lists of Community dental practice was in 861 in March 2020 – before entering locking restrictions.
However, the number in the list, the vast majority of which are related to children, increased to 1,872 in December 2024 – the latest data to date.
Similarly, the number waiting for a pediatric dental appointment increased from 669 to 1,687 during the same period.
Prior to the introduction of locking restrictions, about 8,000 pediatric dental extracts were carried out in hospitals each year.
However, new data published by Scotland’s Public Health (PHS) show that the number was reduced to a low level of 3,757 in 2020 and had only climbed to 6,525 by 2023 – the latest data to date.
Scottish work MSP Jackie Baillie MSP said the items are ‘shocking’
Meanwhile, some health councils have already raised the issue of long -term waiting times for children to have dental procedures in the hospital.
For example, a report by Scottish Borders Health and Social Carenes Partnership said: “An important challenge is the increasing waiting times for pediatric dental anesthesia, which have escalated an average of 447 days, from 92 days in 2019.”
A document published by NHS Tayside also shows that the biggest continuing waiting for children reported for teeth extracts under general anesthetic was 77 weeks in 2024.
There are concerns that the proliferation of sugary foods on the shelves of Britain’s stores plays a huge role in driving the huge number of children who need to be removed under general anesthetic.
In some heart situations, children aged both for two must have been removed by each tooth due to decay.
Mrs Waite added: “Of course the diet plays a role here. The food industry is out of control, it throws breakfast cereal based on chocolate bar and baby food more sugar than coke.
“Now more than ever we have to double the tried and prudent policies.”
Scottish Minister of Health Conservative Shadow Dr. Sandesh Gulhane MSP said: “As a GP, I have seen too many children showing signs of dental decomposition and the SNP must do more to promote healthy diets from an early age and stop these problems before they begin. Children need to be taught that brushing your teeth twice a day is completely critical.
“Neil Gray will have to support our common sense plans to reduce bureaucracy and increase resources at the forefront – where most are needed.”
A spokesman for the Scottish government said: “NHS boards strictly manage pediatric dental lists, with a clear system for rapidly monitoring children in pain and emergency clinical needs, including general anesthesia, if required.
“We had significant success with programs such as Childsmile to improve our children’s oral health in order to minimize their future need for dental extracts under general anesthesia.
“Any long wait for surgery is extremely sad. However, it is important to note that the vast majority of NHS dental care is delivered to a primary care environment. We support the NHS boards to lead improvements in waiting times and target resources to ensure that people who expect the most are treated as soon as possible.
