Will the NHS repair a cracked tooth or just pull it?!

[toothcrackedow]

I have just discovered a cracked filling, called 111 and been told to call back in the morning in the hopes of getting me an emergency appointment.

The cracked tooth/filling is cracked at the very bottom of the tooth (as in where it makes contact with other teeth) and doesn’t seem to be crumbling. I have no idea how this happened 😭

Will they just pull it out? I’ve had one pulled before and really don’t want to go through that again. Please don’t berate me for having bad teeth - I know. It’s awful. But my local dentist keeps putting their prices up and I need to find a new one but they feel so unaffordable 😭

And they wonder why people are angry

Not exactly the current government’s fault. It’s 14 years of the tories stripping everything back and allowing dentists to go private.

who’s going to do a filling for £79 when you can trap people and quote what you like?

I didnt say it was their fault.................
https://www.thetimes.com/uk/healthcare/article/i-had-to-pull-out-my-own-teeth-woman-tells-blair-7k3z0mnhsc5

Absolutely no one can determine whether the tooth can be saved or not. It depends on the tooth, and how mad the damage is.
However from my experience working in emergency OOH clinics, a temporary dressing would be the more likely solution until you can find a permanent dentist. Emergency dentist don’t do many extractions unless it’s a really simple one, as sometimes there isn’t the scope to do a more complicated surgical procedure.
similarly, they don’t often have the materials for a permanent fix.
I do see you have an appointment with a private dentist tomorrow. That’s good.

However be aware that it doesn’t matter if the dentist is private or NHS. If a tooth isn’t saveable it isn’t saveable, and all the money in the world can’t change that.

I’ve taken a picture and it doesn’t look like a huge gaping hole. I know the NHS are more likely to just remove it to save money than to even try.

Then you have to insist you want to try to save the tooth first and that an extraction is a last resort, if all else has already failed. That's what I did with my NHS dentist.

I’m going to have to go private because it means I can actually get it fixed tomorrow

Are you not registered with an NHS dentist at all? You should be able to get an emergency appointment with them after seeing the OOH one for a temporary fix to tide you over.

My OOH dentist is actually at the hospital and is open both days of the weekend. But they don't do anything big. Just ease the pain and suggest what your normal.dentist might do.

Nope, I don’t have a dentist at all. I last went to the dentist in January 2024 and they quoted me £400 for a single filling so I just didn’t go back. I’ve tried to log into their website tonight to make an emergency appointment and they rejected me as I’m not registered there. Found one three towns over who will take me.

111 said I can call them again tomorrow at 8, but they can’t guarantee that I’ll be seen. They said that as I’m not currently a patient at a dentist, I can call my local community dental centre on Monday but there’s no guarantee I’ll get an appointment even this week.

I’m a dentist, and I disagree. The dentist, whether NHS or private will examine your teeth, take a history of the complaint, take a radiograph to further assess the damage. They will then give you all the options available. Even an NHS dentist does private work, so will likely give you private options too.
it doesn’t really work like that, that the NHS will do an extraction to save money. It’s not the dentists money. Surely it’s YOUR money?
You decide. If YOU want to save money YOU opt for the cheapest option.
I don’t think the dentist will necessarily care what YOU ultimately decide. They are there to carry out the required treatment

400 for a filling dont sound right...thats crazy..i paid 150 private for a big filling on a molar. 111 offers only urgent treatment, probably wont do a filling, its usually a waste of time calling them for dental issues. shop around..we have some cheapish private dentists now.

I work in the NHS.

I know that an extraction is going to cost them less than rebuilding the tooth. So they’re more likely to extract than rebuild as the cost of the filling to me won’t cover the entire thing.

I’d take this with a pinch of salt too. A private emergency dentist won’t be operating a full clinic on a Sunday. It will be emergency temporary treatment only most likely

Just wanted to offer my sympathies

This was me last month

I don't have an NHS dentist, I was hoping to sign up with one so had delayed being seen - my mum's dentist opens up their list periodically

so I booked to be seen privately.

Anyway, I was absolutely shocked when they told me it had to be pulled. Mine is a premolar so possibly more visible than yours.

I can see you booked a private appointment

It might be worth seeing the NHS anyway because you don't know what treatment will be offered

I don't want to scare you

I'm currently wearing a denture which cost me £700 - and you don't want to know how much the bridge is going to cost

So anything you can get done on the NHS, I would

I think the NHS should try and save it, I don't think they pull it to save money because wouldn't they then have to pay for a temporary denture and a permanent solution?

if the dentist says to you that they can pull it right then, maybe just keep on with the NHS and see what they can offer

i'm really sorry you're going through this

I could've coped with the one thing, but I grind my teeth and there's a lot of work for me to do. I had a long post talking about implants

Oh, I don't think the NHS will offer you an implant. I think that has to be paid for privately.

The one I’ve found doesn’t seem awful - white filling from £180. I might as tomorrow if there’s something else they can do, but from some research it seems like they may be able to rebuild the side wall without having to do a ton else.

I’ve had a back tooth pulled and the (private) dentist told me I should just ignore it as my wisdom tooth would move forward and fill the gap. That one was in a lot worst state than this one is.

I just despise the dentist and everything to do with it.

I work in the NHS too. The GDC guidelines say that we must give all options available. Sorry, but you do sound a bit paranoid. No dentist will do treatment without your full consent

Just call 111 in the morning as requested and see if they can make an appt - it doesn’t sound as if you are in any pain so I doubt an emergency appt will be given on NHS but worth a try. Keep the private appt until you have contacted 111 - you sound like you are spiralling a little , try to relax a little as nothing can be done til morning and it could be a lot worse

I know that you must give options but it’s very easy to then say “but the only realistic option is extraction”

You do sound like you are spiralling.
as a dentist I would say “The only realistic option is extraction” if that was indeed the only realistic option. I don’t say it cause it saves me money. That’s completely ridiculous.
as another poster pointed out, extraction and their aftermath normally work out more expensive in the long run anyway, as you need to factor in temporary solutions then in denture, bridge or implant.

as before, it’s YOUR money you are saving not the dentist’s. Please be reassured that if the tooth is saveable all options will be presented to you and you will have a choice.

and, as stated earlier, a weekend emergent clinic will likely only temporise a tooth as they don’t normally have the time or facilities to do a permanent restoration. On a busy emergency clinic they only have short slots to offer

They will fill it rather than pull if it is salvageable. However an emergency dentist may only do a temporary fix. Are you in bad pain, if not it can wait until Monday and 111 can refer you then to a nhs dentist,

They can only refer me for the initial stabilisation. If I’m going to have to go emergency I’d rather just do it privately than do half NHS and half somewhere else.

Bloody ridiculous system it is

If it's any help to anyone searching for an NHS dentist, they don't have catchment areas like GPs. Mine is 20 miles away but well worth the trip.

is it painful ? I have an NHS dentist, I go every 6 months, I have a tiny hole on by back molar, in the enamel …it’s been like that for years. The dentist keeps an eye on it and I get regular x-rays, it’s stable and doesn’t need work, just an odd anomaly.

Not overly unless I play with it, what’s worse is that I keep catching my tongue on it.