NHS dental...?

Pretty soon I'm going to have seven teeth removed. Somebody told me that you can get 'bridges', which are dentures that click into your gums (I think that's how he explained it, I've never heard of these before)?





I get free dental treatment on the NHS because I'm a single mother on income support, my question is, can I get these on the NHS, or will I have to pay?

NHS dental...?
15.90 — examination, diagnosis and preventative care including X-rays, scale and polish.


£43.60 — fillings, root canal treatment, extractions plus all the above.


£194.00 — complex courses of treatment and procedures such as the fitting of crowns, dentures or bridges plus all the above.


No charge — writing a prescription, removing stitches, repairs to dentures.





All NHS Patients have to pay this unless they are either 18 under or are claiming certain benefits.
Reply:No you will not have to pay.


The dentist will take care of you as they did for me.
Reply:You have to pay,i was going to get one and it cost 3000 Euro,s.
Reply:i think this will be regarded as necessary work rather than cosmetic so u should get it on the nhs.
Reply:Bridges are false teeth which are permanently fixed to your remaining teeth. Most dentists will not do this treatment on the NHS. You will probably be offered a removable bridge or denture to replace these teeth. Which may clip onto the remaining teeth.





If all of these teeth are at the back of the mouth you may feel that you can live without any "replacement teeth".





Dentures with just a few teeth on are often more trouble than they are worth unless the gaps are at the front of your mouth.
Reply:I have a NHS dentist and after breaking a tooth and having it removed he suggested a denture. I am a pensioner, but no way did I want a denture, he suggested a bridge. Trouble was you DO HAVE TO PAY not only for the one missing tooth but for the treatment on the teeth either side, so in effect you have to pay x3. Worked out very expensive, so decided against it. He said bridges are not done on NHS so would have to go private with him. I was lucky the tooth was at the back, so I just left the gap which does close up (eventually). Good luck
Reply:I not sure where you live,





In scotland a bridge can be provided under NHS regulations and if you are exempt from charges then you will not have to pay, however a bridge cannot be made until the bone where the tooth has been removed has fully healed, this is usually 6 months and mean time you may be provided with a denture.





It all depends on where the tooth was extracted, how many teeth are missing in the gap and the condition of teeth either side.





You say you are to have seven teeth removed, this would be quite a lot to be replaced by bridges but my best advice would be to speak to your dentist as he is the one that can advise your best options available.
Reply:A bridge is used to replace missing teeth. It is cemented in so there is no "plate" and it lasts on average 10 years. However is does damage the remaining teeth as they have to be drilled during the procedure usually. Why are you losing this number of teeth? If it is due to decay os gum disease then it is important to get these problems under sontrol before getting so much advanced dental work done. It you get bridges places and your dental disease is not under control then it is inevitable that it will just leasd to further tooth loss. A denture is a good temporary measure to fill the spaces while you and your dentist get the disease under control. Also the NHS do not allow bridges to be placed until 3months after the tooth has been extracted and healing of the area is completed.
Reply:unfortunatley the NHS does not fund dental work that falls into the catagory "cosmetic", if a bridge (which is a devise that is fixed to you remaining teeth) is nesscessary to keep you dentally fit there may be a chance it will qualify to be done on the NHS, if it doesnt and you request one you will have to pay private charges which can be quite expensive, however you say you are having 7 teeth removed, if this results in you being left with a large gap it may not be possible to have a bridge. You should ask your dentists to explain dentures to you as now adays they are very well made and would probably be available to you on the NHS.