The oral health of children across Lanarkshire has improved, with the percentage of children with no obvious dental decay increasing.

The National Dental Inspection Programme (NDIP) report for 2023/24 has revealed that the number of children with no signs of tooth decay in Lanarkshire is above the Scottish average.

The NDIP is carried out annually in all health boards within Scotland, with support from the Scottish Dental Epidemiology Co-ordinating Committee.

The main aim of the NDIP is to inform parents and caregivers of the dental health status of the child in their care.

Throughout the course of the programme, dental staff carry out dental inspections for primary one (P1) and primary seven (P7) pupils, with detailed inspections alternating annually between P1 and P7.

Soumen Sengupta, director of health and social care at NHS Lanarkshire, said, “Good oral health in childhood is important for healthy teeth and gums throughout life. Teaching children to maintain good oral hygiene habits, such as regular brushing with fluoride toothpaste, is an important part in supporting their overall health and wellbeing.

“The positive findings of the most recent NDIP programme shows the very real difference that is being made to the health of children across Lanarkshire.

“This is to the credit to all of our staff and partners involved, especially in our nurseries and schools, to parents and families for their engagement and support, and most importantly to the children themselves.”

Albert Yeung, consultant in dental public health, said, “NHS Lanarkshire is committed to reducing inequalities in oral health of children and I am delighted that the oral health of P1 children has improved steadily since 2003, and has now exceeded the 2024 target of 74.6 per cent set by the Scottish government.

“We continue to work together across organisations to promote good oral health for children, parents or carers through the national Childsmile programme. This includes daily supervised toothbrushing within nurseries and primary schools across Lanarkshire, as well as supporting access to dental care.”

The team has said it is committed to further improving the oral health of children with an integrated approach to reduce the levels of dental disease in the child population.

Geraldeen Irving, clinical director of the Public Dental Service, said, “It is extremely encouraging to see the latest NDIP results for NHS Lanarkshire which demonstrate the sustained reduction in overall dental decay experience of children within the area.

“In addition to this, I am delighted to see that the proportion of P1 children who have severe decay or infection has reduced significantly since the last inspection and we aim to continue this excellent work.

“We are committed to supporting further improvements that can be made through the excellent preventive programmes that are in place to help reduce the oral health inequalities of children in Lanarkshire.”

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