Coronavirus: I had to file down my own do-it-yourself lockdown filling

Pulling their own teeth out and creating makeshift fillings using putty are some of the desperate measures people at home are taking to treat toothache during lockdown. 

Dentists have been made to close as the government restricts movement to combat the spread of COVID-19. All routine dental work has been cancelled, instead only serious issues will be considered for treatment.

Before lockdown Deb Hepplestone broke her tooth leaving her nerves exposed. Two temporary fillings were fitted but both failed to do the job. The pain proved to be unbearable so Deb took matters into her own hands by moulding putty and pushing it into the gap left in her cracked tooth.

Misshapen and still causing discomfort she felt she had no other choice to then haphazardly file down the filling herself.

Speaking to Sky News Deb said: “I cleaned it out as best I could because I felt I had no other option, there was no where I could go to get a filling, then I had to actually file my own filling down with a metal file because I had a piece of jagged tooth that was digging into my tongue.

“It’s just unfortunate that dental treatment isn’t seen as a priority because dental pain is horrendous and I’m sure there are people in a worse state than I’ve been who are really suffering because they can’t get seen.”

A growing number of people are turning to DIY dentistry and there are concerns about safety.

The British Dental Association (BDA) said people doing dental work on themselves was “inevitable”.

BDA Vice-Chair, Eddie Crouch said: “I’ve seen media coverage of people taking their own teeth out and that certainly is not advised.

“Some emergency DIY treatment with the guidance from a dentist is probably helpful, there are temporary filling kits that can be purchased at the pharmacy so they can actually put something on to sort out a broken tooth or a filling.”

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When it comes to the spread of the coronavirus, dentistry is particularly risky. The issue is regarding dental treatments like filling or scaling which are known as aerosol generating procedures – this means they produce a cloud of mist which could contain the COVID-19 virus.

With surgeries closed, some have been forced to innovate. Many are using video and telephone consultations to safely continue to offer advice to patients. But for infections that can’t wait, a network of urgent dental care practices have been opened by the NHS.

East Village Dental is one surgery that’s been allowed to open. All of the dentists have been allocated the correct personal protective equipment – much needed when performing aerosol generating procedures.

They’ve been seeing patients back to back since opening as an urgent centre. Everyone entering the premises, including patients, must sanitise their hands and wear a face mask.

The staff must regard everyone who walks in as infectious, so PPE is required to be worn at all times.

Although patients with an abscess or infection will be prescribed antibiotics or painkillers, if their condition worsens, they are being urged to call 111 and where necessary they will be directed to one of the NHS urgent centres.

(c) Sky News 2020: Coronavirus: I had to file down my own do-it-yourself lockdown filling