Dental Implants on the NHS?

adpod

Hi,

I am 30 years old and suffer from alot of pain in my teeth and bleeding gums, my dentist has told me this is due to the large amount of work I have had done.

I dont have any adult teeth, nearly every real tooth has a filling, I have 6 crowns and 1 bridge and have recently had 2 baby teeth pulled due to excessive pain.

I am having trouble eating food due to these gaps hurting my gums when I eat, the dentist has mentioned bridging one of these gaps but wants to wait until February 2014 before making a decision.

Can anyone tell me if it is possible to get dental implants on the NHS?

brook2jack

In cases of congenital hypodontia ie where you are missing 6 adult teeth or more that you have never had ( I understand from your posting you have no adult teeth, did they never come through rather than being removed?) then you may be eligible for NHS implants. However this is very much up to the local health authority and individual funding requests and is by no means guaranteed .

Even then you have to be clinically suitable ie there has to be the right quantity and quality of bone and this is often a problem with people who have never had adult teeth as baby teeth are much smaller and need less bone to hold them in. You should not have certain medical conditions, or be taking certain medications or smoke and have excellent oral hygiene.

The process is likely to take a long time , years in most cases and you will have to attend a dental hospital which may be a distance for you to travel. Where you referred to a dental hospital when it was discovered you had no adult teeth? Your dentist will have to refer you if not to start the process off.

adpod

brook2jack wrote: »

In cases of congenital hypoplasia ie where you are missing 6 adult teeth or more that you have never had ( I understand from your posting you have no adult teeth, did they never come through rather than being removed?) then you may be eligible for NHS implants. However this is very much up to the local health authority and individual funding requests and is by no means guaranteed .

Even then you have to be clinically suitable ie there has to be the right quantity and quality of bone and this is often a problem with people who have never had adult teeth as baby teeth are much smaller and need less bone to hold them in. You should not have certain medical conditions, or be taking certain medications or smoke and have excellent oral hygiene.

The process is likely to take a long time , years in most cases and you will have to attend a dental hospital which may be a distance for you to travel. Where you referred to a dental hospital when it was discovered you had no adult teeth? Your dentist will have to refer you if not to start the process off.

Thanks for getting back to me, I have never had adult teeth. This was discovered when I was alot younger by a dentist who has been "struck off" the medical register (he drilled holes is childrens teeth to create work and claimed for work he never done and has been convicted of this then fled the country - I was one of these victims).

My current dentist seems to just want to pull them out or bridge them with his only other solution being false tooth but he says I might not be suitable due to my line of work.

Can I go to my doctor and ask to be referred?

I am always concerned about taking medical advice from someone that makes a profit from me.

brook2jack

No a doctor cannot refer you to a dental hospital , it has to be a dentist as a doctor cannot assess your oral health and condition and the appropriateness of the referral.

If your line of work is something where you may suffer trauma to your face ie professional boxer, rugby player etc then implants may not be suitable either.

There is something seriously wrong if you do not trust a dentist with your oral health decisions. You should try to find someone you do trust because your oral health is best served by you taking advice from someone you trust to have your best interests in mind. A dentist has to put your health interests above their own , thats the definition of a professional, and if you feel they don't then move dentists.

adpod

brook2jack wrote: »

No a doctor cannot refer you to a dental hospital , it has to be a dentist as a doctor cannot assess your oral health and condition and the appropriateness of the referral.

If your line of work is something where you may suffer trauma to your face ie professional boxer, rugby player etc then implants may not be suitable either.

There is something seriously wrong if you do not trust a dentist with your oral health decisions. You should try to find someone you do trust because your oral health is best served by you taking advice from someone you trust to have your best interests in mind. A dentist has to put your health interests above their own , thats the definition of a professional, and if you feel they don't then move dentists.

The first dentist put his wallet before mine and the other hundreds of patients welfare.

My line of work involves extreme heat and was advised that a false tooth on a plate would change shape.

Unfortunately I don't trust any dentist due to my previous experience. In fact I wouldn't trust anyone who makes medical decisions to profit from people except doctors but they don't ask me for money after treatment.

brook2jack

A NHS dentist has to act as a government tax collector. That is a government decision not the dentists. Ever since the fifties the government has placed an onus on dentists to collect patient charges , the same as pharmacists and opticians.

However eventually you will have to trust a dentist as they will have to refer you if you are suitable for implants to replace your baby teeth. Even if you are lucky enough to meet all the requirements and have funding approved treatment is likely to take years and is normally a collaberation between hospital and dentist as the preference is to keep the baby teeth for as long as possible and replace them sequentially.

adpod

brook2jack wrote: »

A NHS dentist has to act as a government tax collector. That is a government decision not the dentists. Ever since the fifties the government has placed an onus on dentists to collect patient charges , the same as pharmacists and opticians.

However eventually you will have to trust a dentist as they will have to refer you if you are suitable for implants to replace your baby teeth. Even if you are lucky enough to meet all the requirements and have funding approved treatment is likely to take years and is normally a collaberation between hospital and dentist as the preference is to keep the baby teeth for as long as possible and replace them sequentially.

Thanks for your help.

It still amazes me that if I have any medical pain in the body it can be fixed for free yet when it comes to pain in my mouth there will always be a charge of some sorts.

DUTR

adpod wrote: »

Thanks for your help.

It still amazes me that if I have any medical pain in the body it can be fixed for free yet when it comes to pain in my mouth there will always be a charge of some sorts.

Sounds like you've never had a real toothache then, I challenge anyone to not offer their worldy possesions to rid of a sharp long lasting toothache.
Your question is a valid one, however harping on about the past that has gone is not going to help right now.

brook2jack

Dental charges were originally introduced to help pay for the Suez crisis.

The issue of dental /optical/prescription charges is one of government policy not dentists/opticians/pharmacists decisions. The government set the charges and exemptions and make it a condition that dentists/opticians/pharmacists collect the charges.

If you are going to embark on a long course of complicated treatment unfortunately you are going to have accept and trust the professionals who will be planning and carrying that out and that includes your own dentist who will be an integral part of that process.

Scrootum

What sort of job involves enough heat to melt ones teeth?

wallbash

Dental charges were originally introduced to help pay for the Suez crisis.

Never knew that,