Paediatric Dentistry

Paediatric Dentistry is the branch of dentistry concerned with providing comprehensive, therapeutic oral health care for children from birth through adolescence (normally up to16 years), including care for those with physical, mental and psychological problems (GDC).

The role of the Paediatric Dentistry service is to primarily provide a diagnostic, treatment planning and advice service to referring practitioners. The types of specialist treatment likely to be provided at the dental hospital would include complex dental or facial conditions needing a team of specialists to treat the patient, children who have significant medical issues eg heart surgery, bleeding problems and cancer, children who have abnormalities of their teeth shape or number, children with teeth and face injuries, children with genetic defects of their teeth and children with soft tissue disease or gum disease.

Both the Public Dental Service based at Kings Cross, Springfield and Broxden and the Hospital Dental Service based at Dundee Dental Hospital are able to provide services for children needing dental care due to anxiety with a range of behaviour management including treatment using sedation and general anaesthesia. Generally the degree of complexity of the dental treatment required will determine where such patients are seen.

A consultation appointment does not guarantee that further treatment will be undertaken at Dundee Dental Hospital & School; our aim is to work in partnership with colleagues in primary care. In some cases, certain items of treatment will be returned to the referring practitioner to carry out, whilst other parts of the treatment plan may be carried out in the department or, on occasion, in the primary care dental service. For patients who are accepted for treatment, this is likely to be for a single course of treatment or specific item of treatment (e.g. management of traumatised teeth, oral ulceration) and it is expected that the referring practitioner will continue to see the patient for routine examinations and will remain responsible for the patient’s emergency and other routine preventive and restorative care.

With the exception of patient groups above (usually treated by consultants/specialists), Dundee Dental Hospital is also a teaching hospital able to accept a limited number of patients suitable for treatment by undergraduate and postgraduate students or dentists in training. We are not able to routinely provide primary care treatment. Some cases are accepted for undergraduate training– largely children who are not exceptionally anxious but require caries management of the primary or mixed dentition - but otherwise patients not requiring specialist care are returned to the referring practitioner for completion.

The Team
The Paediatric Department is consultant-led.  There are many other experienced dentists that work within the department and there may be dentists undergoing further training.

Consultants in Paediatric Dentistry
Dr K Blain                Consultant       GDC No: 59988
Dr S Surendran        Consultant       GDC No: 256066