A child’s tooth is extracted every 15 minutes, new figures reveal

New figures released today show that 33,976 tooth extractions were carried out in children in 2025 due to tooth decay. This equates to a young person, aged between 0 and 19, needing a tooth extraction due to tooth decay, likely under general anaesthetic, every 15 minutes. This is an 11% increase on last year’s numbers. 

The cost of these procedures goes beyond human impact. Decay-related tooth extractions, which are almost entirely preventable, cost the NHS £51.2 million in the financial year ending 2025.  

These figures follow data from last September that showed tooth decay outpaced other common childhood conditions, including acute tonsillitis, as the leading cause of hospital admissions among 5- to 9-year-olds in England.  

Today’s data continues to highlight significant regional disparities. The decay-related tooth extraction episode rate for children and young people living in the most deprived communities was over 3 times that of those living in the most affluent communities. Yorkshire and Humber had the highest rate of decay-related tooth extractions for the fourth year running. For every 100,000 children under 19 in the region, 504 had an extraction which may involve being put under general anaesthesia.  

Dr Charlotte Eckhardt, Dean of the Faculty of Dental Surgery (FDS) at the Royal College of Surgeons of England (RCS England), said: 

“No child should be hospitalised for a disease that is almost entirely preventable. Tooth decay is causing unnecessary pain, missed school days and avoidable hospital admissions at a higher rate in 2025 than the year before. This direction of travel must be reversed.  

“Evaluation of the supervised toothbrushing scheme is a welcome step. It will give us a clearer picture of what works and where further improvements are needed. 

"If the government is to meet its goal of transforming the NHS dental system by 2035, it must ensure every child can see a dentist when they need to. A postcode must never dictate a child's health." 

ENDS 

Notes to editors 

1. Hospital tooth extractions in 0 to 19-year-olds 2025: Short statistical commentary for hospital tooth extractions in 0 to 19 year olds 2025 - GOV.UK. The data commentary notes: “No assumptions can be made about the method of anaesthesia provided for these procedures, but it is likely that the majority of episodes involved general anaesthetic." 
2. The data uses the term 'dental caries', which refers to tooth decay. We have used the terminology ‘tooth decay’ in this press release for clarity.  
3. Figures from September 2025 revealed that tooth decay outpaces other common childhood conditions, including acute tonsillitis, as the leading cause of hospital admissions among 5- to 9-year-olds in England. Dental statistics - England 2024/25 | NHSBSA 
4. The 10 Year Health Plan for England states: “By 2035, the NHS dental system will be transformed, so it provides high quality care at the right time, and nobody goes without because they cannot afford it.” 10 Year Health Plan for England: fit for the future - GOV.UK 
5. National Supervised Toothbrushing Programme Across Early Years Settings in England - NIHR Public Health Interventions Responsive Studies Teams (PHIRST) 
6. The Faculty of Dental Surgery at the Royal College of Surgeons of England is committed to enabling dentists and specialists to provide patients with the highest possible standards of practice and care.  
7. The Royal College of Surgeons of England provides world-class education, assessment, and development to 30,000 surgeons, dental professionals, and members of the wider surgical and dental care teams, at all stages of their careers. Our vision is to see excellent surgical care for everyone. We do this by setting professional standards, facilitating research and championing the best outcomes for patients.   
8. To reduce the number of children being admitted to hospital for tooth decay, the Faculty of Dental Surgery (FDS) at the Royal College of Surgeons of England calls on government to roll out the Supervised Toothbrushing programme year-round; The Supervised Toothbrushing programme should be implemented year-round to ensure that as many children as possible benefit and establish positive brushing habits that they can continue at home. Children should brush their teeth twice daily with fluoride toothpaste and see a dentist regularly.  
9. For more information, please contact the RCS England press office: telephone: 020 7869 6053/6054/6060; email: pressoffice@rcseng.ac.uk.  For out-of-hours media enquiries: 0207 869 6056.