Opal Family Dental | Family & Cosmetic Dentistry | Glen Mills, PA
Dentistry for Kids
Are you aware that taking kids to a children’s dentist on a regular basis is just as important as taking them to their pediatrician? Establishing oral health care routines at an early age is an essential way to ensure that your child’s smile remains healthy.
Children need dental care even if they don’t have any permanent teeth yet. It’s best to bring your child for their first dental examination by age of one. Even if the child is still within the first few years of their life, they will be old enough to understand that the dental appointment is different than anything that they have experienced.
To make it simple, follow this rule: if your child has teeth, then they should be visiting the dentist regularly. As a parent, it is good idea to maintain consistency with the schedule of these appointments. It helps your child to understand the importance of maintaining their dental health and visiting the dentist on a regular basis.
What Should I Expect During My Child's First Visit?
Depending on what your child is comfortable with, we will perform an examination from the dental chair or with the child sitting in the parent’s lap. We will look for signs of cavities and for any jaw alignment issues that could be developing. If necessary, we will take dental x-rays to see if your child has any tooth decay or other issues with the teeth or jaw. Small children usually don’t need to have X-rays taken.
Our practice provides the following kids’ dental care services:
- Teeth Cleaning for Children: Similar to adults, teeth cleaning in kids remove plaque accumulated on child’s teeth.
- Fluoride: We apply topical fluoride to the surface of the teeth. The fluoride treatments make the teeth less likely to become decayed.
- Dental Sealants: Food and bacteria often become trapped in the grooves of the back teeth. Dental sealants consist of a thin layer of dental material that can help to prevent food lodging in deep grooves of chewing surfaces and cause cavities.
- Dental Bonding: We can use materials that are the same color as the natural teeth to repair chipped or fractured teeth.
- Fillings: When cavities happen, we remove the damaged area of the tooth. The area will then be filled with a tooth-colored fillings.
- Baby Tooth Nerve Treatment: When a child has severe tooth decay, the damage may have reached the blood vessels and nerves within the tooth. When this happens, a pulp treatment is typically required to save the tooth.
- Pediatric Crowns: These are caps that are placed over a tooth that has a cavity that is too large to fill. They may also be used after a child has had a root canal.
- Mouthguards: If your children play any kind of sport, it is highly recommended that they wear a mouthguard when participating. A mouthguard will protect the face in the event that it is hit and help to prevent the teeth from breaking, becoming loose or falling out.
Some Tips To Avoid Early Childhood Tooth Decay
- Put your child to bed with a bottle of plain water and not milkor juice.
- Stop nursing when your child is asleep or has stopped sucking on the bottle
- Try not to let your child walk around using a bottle of milk or juice as a pacifier.
- Start to teach your child to drink from a cup to stop using a bottle by 12 to 14 months.
- Don’t dip your child’s pacifier in honey or sugar.