Your guide to specialist dentistry

What can a Specialist do for me?

Specialists are experts in their field, having spent many years in post-graduate study to gain additional qualifications over and above their General Dental degree. They can use the title Specialist only once the General Dental Council has listed them on the Specialist Register and this only occurs when their credentials and post-graduate qualifications have been stringently checked and approved.

Specialists carry out treatment for patients who require a level of skill and experience that exceeds that of General Dental Practitioners. This treatment may take the form of a complex root canal treatment, or your dentist may have diagnosed gum disease that requires the expertise of a Periodontist. Specialists can also assist with impacted wisdom teeth that may lie close to important nerves and require advanced skills and equipment to remove with the minimum risk of damage to the nerve. Dentists will also refer some patients for specialist orthodontic treatment to straighten crooked teeth and correct bite. Your General Dental Practitioner should also check the lining of your mouth, tongue and lymph nodes during your routine examinations to screen you for oral cancer. Any persistent ulcers or coloured lumps or patches inside your mouth may be an indication that an examination by a Specialist in Oral Medicine is required.

Do I need a referral to see a Specialist?

If you feel you may benefit from an expert opinion or specialist treatment you do not have to wait to be referred by a general dentist.

Many of our self-referred patients are not currently registered with a General Dental Practitioner and worry that they cannot receive specialist treatment without a referral. Whilst many of the patients our Specialists treat are referred by their dentist.