Flintridge Dental Group
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Pediatric Dental Care

Pediatric Dental Care

High Quality Dentistry for Kids

Pediatric dental care recommendations by Flintridge Dental Group is a broad concept than just looking at the teeth. We perform a review of the child’s health history to determine if there is a need for any special dental care. This pediatric dental examination includes the health and condition of your child’s teeth, soft tissues, gums, head, and neck. The dentist also monitors the growth of the jaws and development of the teeth and evaluates any oral habits, such as thumb sucking. We use all these factors to make a diagnosis. Then we create a treatment plan and provide you with the instructions for pediatric dental care.

Pediatric Office Cleaning

The dentist or hygienist will clean the child’s teeth to remove any plaque or calculus. Without treatment, this build up can cause gum disease and tooth decay. We also use fluoride to strengthen and treat your teeth and enable them to resist tooth decay.

Contact Your La Cañada Flintridge Porcelain Veneer Specialist.

Cleanings and fluoride treatments are recommended twice a year to maintain your child dental health and prevent decay.

Oral Hygiene Instructions:

Prevention is a vital part of pediatric dental care. We will provide you the tips on home dental care, such as brushing techniques. The dentist may also provide a list of foods and habits that should be avoided.

Pediatric Dental Care by Flintridge Dental Group

X-rays:

As Children’s mouth grow rapidly, there are more changes in the mouth as compare to adults and thus they need more x-rays for pediatric dental care. They are also more susceptible to tooth decay. Pediatric dentists can use x-rays to survey erupting teeth, diagnose bone diseases, analyze the extent of an oral injury, or plan orthodontic treatment. As a major part of pediatric dental care, pediatric x-rays help in the oral examination as they allow us to diagnose the conditions visually. If dental problems are identified and treated early, dental care will be less invasive and affordable.

Pediatric dentists are careful to minimize the exposure of your child to radiation. We always use lead body aprons and shields that help in protecting your child’s body. We use the modern dental technique and equipment that is designed to focus x-ray beam only where it is needed. Use of high-speed film and digital x-rays help minimize radiation exposure.

In pediatric dental care, it is recommended to have x-ray examinations in every six months if the child has a high risk of tooth decay. And children who have a low risk of tooth decay require x-rays in a less frequency.

Panoramic x-rays:

Pediatric panoramic x-rays may sometimes be necessary for visual image of child’s entire mouth and jaws. This panoramic view of your child’s mouth can show abnormal growth, extra or missing teeth, or any other oral issues. Panoramic x-ray examination is usually scheduled when your child has his/her 6th-year molars.

Sealants:

In pediatric care, sealants are used to treat the tooth decay. Sealants are made of clear plastic and are applied to the chewing surface area of the tooth. Some children have the teeth which are very difficult to clean because of depressions and grooves. Sealants are used here to fill these depressions. Sealants are durable, quick, and painless. If the pediatric dental care instructions are followed properly, Sealants could be the best dentistry option for your kids.

Tooth Colored Filings:

Tooth-colored porcelain fillings are used to improve the appearance of the front teeth. Sometimes, they are also used in pediatric dental care to repair chipped or decayed teeth anywhere in the mouth. The advantage of tooth-colored fillings is that they cannot distinguish.

Crowns:

Baby teeth hold the spacing for the permanent teeth and help guide the permanent teeth into position. Baby teeth allow for the normal development of the child’s jawbone and muscles. To maintain your baby’s primary teeth is also a part of pediatric dental care. In case, a child’s teeth get fracture and need fillings on more than one tooth surface, your dentist can also recommend you to place a crown instead of a filling. The fillings are not durable and can be broken again, but crown lasts till the adult teeth come. Most of the cases caries less expense and less trauma.

Stainless Steel Crowns:

Stainless steel crowns are caps of silver color. These crowns cover the whole tooth. Generally, dentists use stainless steel crowns for treating the teeth with extensive decay. Stainless steel crowns may be the most durable crowns and last until the baby teeth fall out.

NuSmile Crown:

This is also stainless steel crown and has a tooth-colored coating on the front. This option is for restoring the baby teeth of your kids. It also helps to improve the cosmetic appearance of your children.

Strip Crown:

Strip crown is created with clear shell and fitted over the teeth. It is filled with tooth colored fillings. After applying a light, the outer clear shell is removed. This option is considered to be the most cosmetic pleasing.

Pedo-Jacket Crown:

The pedo-jacket crown is a white plastic shell. This crown is also filled with tooth-colored fillings. And then a curing light is applied in the treatment. Unlike a strip crown, this shell is left in place.

Pulp Treatment:

root canal treatment , also known as endodontic, focuses on the pulp of the tooth. The pulp is to supply nutrients and oxygen to your teeth. In pediatric dental care, Endodontic treatment is performed in order to save the tooth when the pulp gets infected or injured. During this treatment, the whole area of disinfected is cleaned.

In case the pulp is injured, the endodontic treatment is the better way to save your tooth. Your dentist may suggest endodontic treatment on your baby’s teeth unless baby’s teeth fall out. Without treatment, the child will experience pain or discomfort, and infection may result. Child’s primary teeth help in chewing and learning language and pronunciation, so a dentist doesn’t advise to extract your primary tooth. Instead, your dentist always gives you recommendations for better pediatric dental care. Also if a baby tooth is extracted too early, neighboring teeth can shift and occupy some of the vacant space making it difficult for the permanent tooth to grow in properly.

However, there are some symptoms that can indicate the need for endodontics, such as sensitivity, toothache, etc. The type of endodontic treatment that may be recommended depends on how seriously the pulp is affected, an evaluation of the tooth and the results of an X-ray.

Extractions:

Your baby’s primary teeth play an important role in chewing and speaking development. Primary teeth also maintain proper spacing between the permanent teeth and help guide the permanent teeth when they finally cut through the gums. There are certain conditions to remove a baby tooth, but your dentist always tries to preserve your baby’s teeth. Extraction of a tooth may be necessary for the following situations:

  • The tooth is too damaged or decayed to be restored
  • When tooth blocks the adult tooth from emerging after falling out
  • Need to be removed due to crowding teeth or some other orthodontic purposes
  • Impacted or un-erupted wisdom teeth

Once a tooth has been removed, neighboring teeth may start to shift, resulting in problems with spacing and growth and development. A space maintainer can be used to avoid these problems.

Space Maintainers:

Space maintainers play a necessary role in pediatric dental care when a child prematurely losses primary tooth. A space maintainer holds open the gap where the permanent tooth will come in and avoids shifting of the neighboring teeth. Space maintainers can be fixed or removable, and they can be unilateral(fixed to one side of the mouth) or bilateral(fixed to both sides of the mouth). For younger patients, fixed space maintainers are usually recommended.

Nitrous Oxide:

Also known as laughing gas, nitrous oxide is a type of sedation that can be administered when a child is scared and not able to relax. It is also used with patients who have sensitive gag reflexes.

Conscious Sedation:

Conscious sedation medications are available for children who need help relaxing at the dental office. Conscious sedation is sometimes needed for those children who are anxious during appointments. Conscious sedation helps increase cooperation and reduces anxiety and discomfort during dental procedures.