The British Dental Association has applauded moves by the Care Quality Commission requiring remote orthodontic providers to be registered with them in order to practise lawfully.

The watchdog has stated that remote orthodontics comes under the regulated activities of 'Treatment of disease, disorder or injury' and 'Diagnostic and screening procedures' and as such requires registration, and by extension inspection.

The Commission notes that 'to register with us, providers must assure us that they are able to provide safe and effective care in line with relevant legislation and guidance' and has indicated its willingness to prosecute providers who fail to register.

The General Dental Council recently acknowledged vital principles long advocated by the BDA that orthodontic patients need to be fully assessed by a dentist, that direct dentist-to-patient interaction - the basis for informed consent - is essential, and that patients must know the name and registration number of the dentist responsible for their care. However, while offering warnings to patients the regulator failed to set out any sanctions to providers who departed from these principles.

Remote provision is growing in popularity, but can lead to irreversible damage to a patient's mouth.

BDA Chair Eddie Crouch said: 'With remote orthodontics we need real regulation, not just empty warnings to properly protect patients.

'Mandatory CQC registration and inspection is a much-needed first step. A health watchdog needs teeth, and a willingness to prosecute those who fail to register is sending the right signal to unscrupulous operators.' In a recent BOS members' survey (April 2021), 82% of members were 'concerned about more patients seeking DIY orthodontics during and following the pandemic'. In fact, it has been a concern for BOS members for a number of years.

British Orthodontic Society Director of External Relations, Anjli Patel commented: 'This news from the CQC is very welcome. This is something that BOS have been calling for, for a long time. As we have highlighted before, this is a patient safety issue and we hope that this action will provide more certainty for those seeking orthodontic treatment.

One of our primary concerns about DIY orthodontics is that many patients were said to be unaware of the identity of their supervising dentists. Today's announcement will mean this is rectified.'