New figures show that around 84,000 children and adolescents are waiting for a public dental assessment, or treatment around the country.
The HSE assessments are carried out by public health dental teams which visit primary schools.
The Irish Dental Association has described the waiting list figures as shocking.
Its spokesperson, Dr Gillian Smith, said that due to delays in assessments, children end up in pain, with swelling and infection, being put on repeated courses of antibiotics, needing operations under general anaesthetic and missing school.
According to the figures, the regions with the largest delays are:
Community Healthcare Organisation 5 (Carlow, Kilkenny, South Tipperary, Waterford, Wexford) with around 22,900 waiting.
Community Healthcare Organisation 2 (Galway, Mayo, Roscommon) with 18,500 waiting.
Community Healthcare Organisation 8 (Laois, Offaly, Longford, Westmeath) with 12,900 waiting.
See our interactive map below.
The figures were secured by Fianna Fáil health spokesperson, Stephen Donnelly, under a parliamentary question.
Deputy Donnelly said children were being failed by the system by having to wait for assessments and some are not seen at all.
He said there were clear staffing shortages in certain areas to do the dental assessments.
Deputy Donnelly said that in some areas, when children miss their assessments in fourth class, they are simply taken off the waiting list.
In Dublin West, the HSE said there were 2,200 children in 4th classes awaiting appointments and "it is unlikely they will be seen until they are in 6th class due to staffing levels".
It said there were also an estimated 6,167 children waiting assessment in fourth classes and these are waiting for 26-52 weeks.
"These children will not be seen," the HSE for Community Health Area 7 said.
This area covers Dublin West, South West, South City, Kildare and West Wicklow.
In Community Healthcare Area 9 - covering Dublin North, North Central and North West, the HSE said that due to some staff shortages, some of the eligible patients awaiting a screening appointment cannot be offered one.
"This is particularly true for the fourth class age group. Once such patients are waiting over 52 weeks they are no longer considered waiting, as the new school year commences and they cannot be offered appointments", the HSE said.
Some of the children and adolescents are waiting over four years for orthodontic treatment.
The Irish Dental Association said that children should be assessed three times during their primary school education.
Dr Gillian Smith said that assessments and screening help pick up disease early for children.
She said she sees families who opt out of the public system and pay privately for their children but there are many people who can not afford to do this.
HSE Statement
In a statement, the HSE said that almost one million children, up to and including 15 years, are eligible for its free dental services.
It said that its targeted preventive and treatment services for children involved identifying those with the greatest needs and the highest risk of dental disease.
The HSE said that in excess of 95% of children are screened and offered follow-up treatment.
It said that typically, children are targeted in first, second and sixth class.
The HSE said that a number of dentists were recruited into four Community Healthcare Organisation areas last year.
It said there were approximately 70,000 children in each of the targeted classes.
The HSE said that each year around 7,000 children are referred for dental extractions in acute hospitals under general anaesthetic.
It added that the orthodontic service is limited to those children with the most severe and complex treatment needs.
Emily's story
Emily is 17 years of age and is in her Leaving Certificate year.
She has been on the waiting list since 2016 for orthodontic treatment.
Her mother Georgina Doyle from Baltinglass in Wicklow told RTÉ News that Emily suffers from teeth overcrowding and is conscious of the problem.
She said she needed braces and it was very frustrating on the waiting list, as an appointment for treatment could come in a few days, or not until next year.
