DIY dentistry

In a new survey, one in five (20 per cent) said they would attempt to remove a tooth either on their own or ask a friend to do so if they could not afford the necessary dental treatment, prompting the British Dental Health Foundation to issue a stark reminder of the potential problems this could cause.

Nigel Carter OBE, chief executive of the British Dental Health Foundation, says the research highlights the desperate measures some will go to rid themselves of pain and issues a strict warning to those thinking about performing DIY dentistry.

Nigel says: “DIY dentistry is both dangerous and unnecessary.  There are too many senseless examples of people either pulling out the wrong tooth or ending up with an infection.  It is all too easy to make the problem worse, which could result in more invasive and expensive treatment, so I urge those considering self-treatment to think again.

“The scandal of these results are that access and affordability of good quality NHS dentistry has never been better.”