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Blood tests for people with severe learning disabilities receiving dental treatment under general anaesthesia Stacey Clough Zahra Shehabi Claire Morgan Claire Sheppey Dental Update 2024 43:9, 707-709.
Authors
StaceyClough
BChD, MJDF RCSEng
Specialist Registrar in Special Care Dentistry, Barts Health Dental Hospital, Turner Street, Whitechapel, London E1 1BB, UK (Stacey.clough@bartshealth.nhs.uk)
People with learning disabilities (LDs) have poorer health than their non-disabled peers due to failures in reasonable adjustments. One hundred patients with severe LD and challenging behaviour attended for dental treatment under GA, during which routine blood testing was provided. Communication with general medical practitioners (GMPs) and blood test results were evaluated, showing poor communication with GMPs and significant undiagnosed disease among this group. Blood tests generate similar costs in primary and secondary care but a holistic approach to care under GA reduces expenses brought by lost clinical time and resources due to complex behaviours in an out-patient setting.
CPD/Clinical Relevance: This article discusses a holistic approach to healthcare for people with severe LD, including patient outcomes, financial and resource implications, and offers practical guidance on venepuncture technique, which is relevant to many aspects of both community and hospital dental practice.
Article
Learning disability (LD) can be described as intellectual and social impairment which starts before adulthood and has a lasting effect on development.1 A spectrum exists from mild to severe, with a varying degree of difficulty in understanding, memory, coping with new situations, communication and self-care.2,3 Although there is no central register, it is estimated that there are at least 1.1 million people with a LD in England.4
People with LDs have poorer health and experiences of healthcare than their non-disabled peers.5 Over the last 15 years, this situation has received significant political attention.
The recent ‘Confidential inquiry into premature deaths of people with learning disabilities’ (CIPOLD)6 showed that, out of 247 deaths reviewed among people with LD between 2010–2012, 42% were considered premature. The median age of death for people with LD (65 years male; 63 years female) was considerably less than that of the UK general population (78 years male; 83 years female).6
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