Sir, the rise in adult patients seeking dental treatment abroad, and the risks of doing so, have been well documented in recently published articles.1,2 The General Dental Council, in conjunction with the Oral Health Foundation, produced useful information to support patients to make an informed decision about seeking dental treatment abroad.3 Unfortunately, this document does not cover, or indeed consider, the possibility of this occurring in children.
We recently re-assessed an eight-year-old patient, who had initially presented to our department as a seven-year-old, with a white hypomineralised anterior opacity that had no post-eruptive breakdown and caused them no aesthetic concerns. At this review visit, we were advised that the child had received invasive treatment whilst abroad. The clinical impression was that this tooth had indeed received invasive treatment, but we were unable to fully establish what had been completed. Current guidance would support far less invasive options, such as resin-infiltration, to manage a case such as this.4,5 Upon discussing this with the child, it appeared their aesthetic concerns had remained unchanged, and in fact, this treatment was driven by the father's aesthetic expectations. The father disclosed that whilst receiving his own course of treatment in Turkey, he was offered management for his child's teeth, as a 'freebie'. This type of gesture could incentivise other parents, who themselves are seeking treatment abroad, to have their children's teeth managed in addition to their own, when it may not be in the child's best interest. As a profession, we should be mindful that this could become commonplace, especially given the current NHS access issues. As endorsed by the BSPD, aesthetic management of children should only be completed following a shared decision-making process, including the views of the child.6
1 School of Dental Sciences, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom
2 Newcastle upon Tyne NHS Hospitals Trust, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom
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Taylor, G., Burbridge, L. 'Turkey Teeth' in children. BDJ In Pract 36, 6 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41404-023-1949-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41404-023-1949-2