Advice please! DH needs his wisdom tooth out - can't afford our dentists price :(

[Laiste]

Hes been in pain with it before twice. A year ago he signed up with a private dentist and they made him have x rays,and 2 hygiene appts and charged £300 and never got as far as taking the bloody tooth out! Just ran out of money to spend on it and it had calmed down so he left it.

Now it's flaring up again and he just wants it out. His dentist want to charge £300+ to take it out!

Ringing round but no one seems to be taking on nhs patients at all. Yesterday he tried 111 ( google's advice) and they said they'd refer him to Bupa for emergency treatment but this morn Bupa have said starting price would be £80 for antibiotics and extraction not on nhs. 🧐So confused ...

Any advice? Thanks in advance .

Another vote for a dental hospital.

I also see you live on a border. If that means separate health trusts, it’s worth getting 111 to check emergency provision in both, as one may have better than the other.

I had my wisdom teeth removed under general anaesthetic 7 years ago (two impacted and sideways, one infected), although not in the UK. I got an abscess 3 weeks later in the UK, was staying on the border of two health trusts and the one the computer considered further away (but was easier to drive to) had emergency NHS appointments and a dental hospital.

Thanks for continuing replies 😊

Rang GP - no, won't prescribe for any kind of dental pain

There's a long list of dentist who are 'taking on NHS patients'. But when you ring up either they just aren't (?) or they'll put you in their waiting list which is years long.

I rang 5 of them yesterday.

nearest seems to be Birmingham Uni but they have a waitlist like every one else.

This is mad.

Could you buy the antibiotics from an online pharmacy? I’ve done that before.

I’ve PM’d you a couple of NHS dentists in the region. Good luck to your DH.

I got mine out at the local hospital under maxo facial team. Tbh I would be calling dentist’s further away from your house (there’s not area limit) and being prepared to travel eg an hour to an NHS dentist

i rang 13 before I got a dentist!

I'm looking for a dental
hospital near us but when i google it it's just throwing up normal dentists near me 🧐 What am i doing wrong?

Thank you ♥️

The cost of £300 is about right for an impacted tooth but my dentist (private) charges from £160 for normal extractions.

I'm very surprised that so many posters say their dentist doesn't remove wisdom teeth. I had one removed 40 years ago which was impacted and I needed stitches.

My adult DS had a similar tooth extracted at a private dentist recently.
It's not always a hospital job.

OP maybe you need to look at a private dental plan (insurance) where you pay something like £25 a month so you don't get into this pickle again.

Antibiotics, by the way, don't often clear an infection without the tooth being extracted.

Maybe now you have to grin and bear the cost and put it on a credit card?

In a similar position with dh, except his treatment is quite a bit more, we will just be taking the payment plan and cutting back as much as possible to pay for it - we have no choice really, you can’t leave infected teeth, it’s too much of a health risk, so really there is no other option.

There are not many dental hospitals- not sure why people think there are!
They are usually but not always attached to universities or part of larger 'normal' hospitals.

https://www.bhamcommunity.nhs.uk/birmingham-dental-hospital/

From the information on the website, you will need a 111 emergency referral. They also operate through the Scott Arms Dental Practice, who it may be worth ringing and explaining the situation, if you haven’t already.

You rang and spoke to a GP in less than 8 minutes, this early in the day? That’s incredible

So you're saying she's lying?

If you are in the UK it should be done under the NHS if it really needs doing, I've had two done, both free, one under GA and one under local, referred to the hospital by my private dentist no NHS dentists available.

You need dental departments of local hospitals or trusts or maxifacial surgery

@Laiste He really needs continuity of care and to build up a relationship with a dentist with regular appts.

Men can be very casual over this kind of thing.

As you have said, impacted wisdom teeth can flare then remiss. I'm not sure you know if it's actually infected or you're assuming it is because of the pain.
Pain doesn't always equal infection if it's impacted.

What he needs is an ongoing conversation via regular appts, with his private dentist about whether to remove the tooth or not.

Unless it's 100% impossible, he should pay the £300, but also consider Denplan insurance longer-term.

No, I’m saying she’s lucky to have such a responsive GP in this day and age.

I can speak to my GP within 5 minutes too.

@Laiste I had to have an emergency wisdom tooth removal recently and it was a similar price.

111 will be reading off a script so a lot of times it's just not reliable. Especially when it's not a medical emergency.

I think you'll have to take up a payment plan. That's just the way it is now for most people.

Good luck on trying the two NHS dentists today, though. Hopefully one of them will come through for you.

But they don't do emergency admissions, usually.
People I know who are referred to dental hospitals are on waiting lists- it's not emergency treatment.

I hope you get sorted soon - after all this is you can afford it i highly recommend dental insurance- I currently pay 20e a month and i am covered for 100 per cent routine check ups, 75 back on fillings and am covered for teeth extraction and emergency dental treatment. Its so worth it

Look for NHS emergency dentists. there is an NHS one in Oxford based at 2Nd Floor, East Oxford Health Centre, Manzil Way, Oxford, Oxfordshire, OX4 1XD.

There is one at Great Barr in Birmingham who were very good with my eldest autistic DS when a wisdom tooth broke exposing the nerve. They got it out for him.

Having used Bham Dental Hospital for DS in pain and looking like a hamster with wisdom teeth I can recommend. Yes it’s a long wait but if you are in real need they will triage and help you. They can take out badly infected teeth and have the back up of the QE and Midlands Hospital oral surgery and maxofacial teams if I/v antibiotics or more complex dental work is needed.

Hope you manage to get him some help….and check his private payment plan as Denplan’s office can signpost for where you could find help in emergencies too.

About 6/7 years ago I had an infected root that was AGONY. I couldn't find an NHS dentist for love nor money. 111 referred me to an emergency dentist but they also wouldn't remove the tooth, just patched me up (badly) for a fee.

In the end I went to A&E, in the middle of the night. I was howling like I was in labour, the pain was insane. The snotty receptionist told me they couldn't do anything for tooth pain. I told her (with about 90% seriousness) that if they didn't help me I was going to jump off the local bridge as it was unbearable. Luckily a nurse overheard and told her to 'admit' me (or whatever the terminology is). I needed IV antibiotics and had surgery to remove the tooth. I was in hospital for 4 days. If I had been able to access an NHS dentist, this wouldn't have been necessary. Something has to give in dentistry. It's mad.

I can speak to my GP within 5 minutes too.

How on earth do you manage that?