The Oral Health Foundation has said the latest rise in hospital tooth extractions among children is a stark reminder that preventable disease is still sending thousands of young people to hospital each year.

New government figures from 2025 show that 33,976 children and young people aged 0 to 19 had teeth removed in hospital because of tooth decay – an increase of 11% on the previous year.

In total, 56,143 tooth extractions were carried out in NHS hospitals for this age group, up 14% year-on-year. Tooth decay accounted for 6 in 10 extractions.

The cost to the NHS for decay-related extractions reached £51.2 million, up from £45.8 million the previous year.

A disease we know how to prevent

Tooth decay remains the leading cause of hospital admission among children aged five to nine.

For children under four, around 8 in 10 extractions were due to decay. Among five to nine-year-olds, the figure rises to nearly nine-in-10.

Inequality is driving the crisis

Children living in the most deprived communities were more than three times more likely to have teeth removed because of tooth decay than those in the least deprived areas.

Rates varied widely across England, with some regions experiencing extraction rates more than double the national average.

While hospital activity has recovered since the pandemic, access to routine NHS dental care for children has not fully returned in many areas.

The Oral Health Foundation says prevention and access must go hand in hand if these figures are to fall.

Without early check-ups and timely treatment, small problems become hospital emergencies.