Any dentists?

[ciare]

Hi my local dentist, Borough Dental is closed and they have told me they are not open for anything even emergencies, and suggested I try Guys dental.

I was just wondering if anyone has had any help when calling 111 and explaining their dental problems? I read on Guys website that this is the only way they will see people and obviously if 111 deems the problem serious enough.

My filling came out and if it was just pain I would dose up on paracetamol and orajel, but there is a very sharp edge on my tooth which is really hurting my tongue and it's painful to eat and even talk.

I am going to try and put the filling back but just wanted to know if anyone has any success calling 111?

Thanks

[Blah Blah]

If I were you I would call Guys and see if you can see an emergency dentist. If a filling is out, it risks exposing the nerve which will be far worse for pain than a sharp edge (probably caused by the filling taking a piece of the tooth with it). They may at the very least be able to get a dentist to call you back and discuss it.

And edited to add that NHS services are still open for advice and emergencies. So do not worry about giving Guys a call. It is just a call and hopefully someone qualified will be able to assess you over the phone.

[dbboy]

Try Kings Dental school who I think had a walk in service prior to CV19, perhaps take a look at their website.

[DulwichFox]

dbboy Wrote:

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> Try Kings Dental school who I think had a walk in

> service prior to CV19, perhaps take a look at

> their website.

a couple of years back went to Kings Dental for an Emergency where I had an Infection in a Tooth.

They could not help and told me to call 111. I got an appointment at a dentist in Penge,

They gave me antibiotics as the treatment could not be done until the infection had been treated,

The tooth was capped and had to be removed.

My face was numb as the dental nerve was damaged. I did not get the feeling back for 3 -4 weeks.

Foxy

[KidKruger]

I think I read on another thread (think was here on EDF) that someone had contacted hospitals locally and been told that for several dental complaints they will just remove the tooth at fault.

This is to reduce time in the surgery (safety for staff) and save messing about with matching enamel shades and the other cosmetic niceties. At least, that?s the impression I got from the post.

[malumbu]

Emergency filling can be bought over the counter

https://www.superdrug.com/Health/First-Aid/First-Aid-Kit/Dentek-Dental-First-Aid-Kit/p/205300?gclid=CjwKCAjwh472BRAGEiwAvHVfGufkvqh3db8OaTLROc6C1MT97qHcvhdj3lq9TED2kBm6LmNGj_SRvxoCXPkQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

Obviously a temporary solution

I really doubt they will pull out a tooth unless last resort

If Seldoc is still operating another alternative

[mybaby178]

Unfortunately you might find it hard to find a dentist to fix your problem, my husband is a dentist and his surgery has been closed since March , with no signs of reopening at the moment as there is not enough PPE for dentists and their procedures are deemed to risky .

Does your dentist have an emergency number , my husband has an emergency phone so he can still speak to his patients and offer advice/antibiotics, he had patients that called 111 and they said the advice given was useless !

With regards to Kings dental this is shut until September at the earliest.

Getting seen at Guys is also tricky I think it needs to be an absolute emergency, my husband referred one of his patients they said they will see him but when he got there they turned him away !

Unfortunately dentists have been completely disregarded in the crisis , with no clear path of when and how they can reopen .

[JohnL]

I must have been one of the last to have a dental appointment at the Gardens - days before lockdown and no real feel of oncoming doom in the surgery (it was a very relaxed appointment with no fillings and I seem to get a few due to 1970s childhood drilling)

They have a number for patient advice if you're registered with them but other than that it's 111

http://www.thegardensdentalcentre.co.uk/

[JohnL]

KidKruger Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> I think I read on another thread (think was here

> on EDF) that someone had contacted hospitals

> locally and been told that for several dental

> complaints they will just remove the tooth at

> fault.

> This is to reduce time in the surgery (safety for

> staff) and save messing about with matching enamel

> shades and the other cosmetic niceties. At least,

> that?s the impression I got from the post.

Last tooth I had removed took 30 minutes of pulling and then it split apart :( Some people find removing teeth easier but some of us have teeth that won't come out. Wouldn't want to go through that under current conditions (no real reason why just would not feel good about it)

just a gap left as it was a molar.

[redjam]

It's an absolute scandal that dentists haven't remained open. Other countries have managed to keep their dentists open throughout the crisis, with staff being provided with extra PPE to keep everyone safe - why can't we? It's storing up heaps of problems for the future, from extra teeth removal to serious illnesses being missed (there was an article about it in the Times today - it said that in a normal six-week period, nearly 1000 cases of cancer are initially diagnosed by dentists). Plus there's a fear that a large number of dentists will go bust - dentists aren't being offered full relief from business rates, apparently, unlike many other high-street businesses.

Bringing it back to local - I've got a friend who works in the dental institute at Kings and she's been working throughout the crisis, so it is taking emergency appointments. But that might just be children only, not sure.

Hope you manage to find someone to sort your problem, OP. I feel your pain - my daughter's been told she's going to have an extra 4-6 months of her braces because of this delay (there'll be a huge backlog when the orthodontists reopen, plus her teeth will have 'overcorrected' in this time). She was about three weeks off having them completely removed before we went into lockdown!

[vic.ham]

My son was due to have a tooth removed before lockdown and had a temporary seal put in place, which has now come out and he has started to experience pain. H e has tried to manage it himself and yesterday called 111 for some advice. He has been effectively triaged over the phone and given advice but informed that unless he has any swelling to the face he will not be able to seek emergency treatment at this time.

Sorry to hear you are suffering too, fingers crossed for a better solution.

[JohnL]

we'll be back to chewing cloves

[mybaby178]

redjam Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> It's an absolute scandal that dentists haven't

> remained open. Other countries have managed to

> keep their dentists open throughout the crisis,

> with staff being provided with extra PPE to keep

> everyone safe - why can't we? It's storing up

> heaps of problems for the future, from extra teeth

> removal to serious illnesses being missed (there

> was an article about it in the Times today - it

> said that in a normal six-week period, nearly 1000

> cases of cancer are initially diagnosed by

> dentists). Plus there's a fear that a large number

> of dentists will go bust - dentists aren't being

> offered full relief from business rates,

> apparently, unlike many other high-street

> businesses.

>

> Bringing it back to local - I've got a friend who

> works in the dental institute at Kings and she's

> been working throughout the crisis, so it is

> taking emergency appointments. But that might just

> be children only, not sure.

>

> Hope you manage to find someone to sort your

> problem, OP. I feel your pain - my daughter's been

> told she's going to have an extra 4-6 months of

> her braces because of this delay (there'll be a

> huge backlog when the orthodontists reopen, plus

> her teeth will have 'overcorrected' in this time).

> She was about three weeks off having them

> completely removed before we went into lockdown!

This is what I have said in my previous post, there isn?t enough PPE for Dentists which is one of the reasons they can?t go back , trust me Dentists would love to be able to go to work but it?s not safe enough without the correct PPE and also they need to overcome the problem of the aerosols that they use last in the air for around 3 hours so effectively they would only be able to see one patient every 3 hours !!

With regards to Kings yes they are seeing emergencies but it has to be near enough life threatening, I meant the dental school is closed until September

[redjam]

Yes I realise the dentists themselves want to go back but their hands are tied by the government incompetence around PPE. Maddening.

Re the aerosols, sorry if this is a stupid question, but wouldn?t an open window and a fan help with that? Or an extractor fan??? Let?s hope so, because otherwise there?s no way we can have normal dentistry for the foreseeable..,

[mybaby178]

I?m afraid having the windows open is not enough , with regards to extractor fans that is something that?s being looked into.

I agree something must be done my husband has not worked since lockdown and the government have literally made no mention of dentists at all !!

The message from 111 is literally put up with the pain unless it?s life threatening such as an abscess that has burst or swelling to the face.

My husband feels so frustrated for his patients!

[Blah Blah]

Even with PPE, conditions won't be ideal. Dentists often never stop, esp if treating NHS patients where they are time limited, and PPE is hot and uncomfortable to work in. This is why tests that deliver results in minutes (be they antigen or viral) are needed asap. It is the ability of asymptomatic and incubating infected people to shed the virus that makes all of this very complicated. I think there needs to be some expert guidance on this to develop a policy for moving forward. We need dental treatment, even just the six month checkups, for good reason.

[ciare]

Thank you everyone for your replies, I really appreciate it. I got in touch with 111 and spoke with a very friendly lady who said a triage nurse will contact me to see if whether my issue is serious enough to go and have it checked out, and am just waiting on her call.