A concerning increase in the number of young children requiring dental surgery has emerged, with babies as young as one year old now being hospitalized for severe tooth decay. This trend has prompted dental professionals to stress the critical importance of early and consistent oral health care for children.
Dr. Mark Penrose of the SA Dental Service reported a distressing trend: “I have seen cases where every tooth in a child’s mouth had to be extracted. This occurred with a child who was only three or four years old. The teeth were so decayed they were essentially black stumps.”
In South Australia alone, the past year has seen 24 babies under the age of one needing general anesthesia to address severe tooth decay, often leading to extractions. This figure dramatically increases when considering children under eight years old, with approximately 2,500 cases reported, and the trend continues to rise.
Experts are scrutinizing parental practices, as tooth decay in young children is largely preventable. Common factors contributing to the issue include inadequate dental hygiene, frequent consumption of sugary beverages and foods, and putting babies to sleep with bottles of milk.
The financial aspect of dental visits is not considered a barrier, as there are 250,000 children under the age of 18 in South Australia eligible for free dental care. Despite this, only about one-third of these eligible children actually attend their appointments, highlighting a significant gap in preventive care.
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