Dental 101

Just as you would visit a pediatrician for your child’s health needs, you would visit a pediatric dentist for their oral health needs. A pediatric dentist has completed at least four years in dental school and an additional two years of residency designed specifically around the growth and development of children. Pediatric dentists are dedicated to the oral health of children from infancy through the teen years.

After two years of specialty training, pediatric dentists dedicated to pursuing excellence in their field may voluntarily undergo a rigorous process to become certified by the American Board of Pediatric Dentistry (ABPD).

The ABPD requires that all members remain current in the latest developments in care, research, and technology. Once certified, in order to remain in good standing, additional continuing education in the field of pediatric dentistry above and beyond the minimum required to be a pediatric dentist must be undertaken on a yearly basis. Learn more at the American Board of Pediatric Dentistry.

Dr. Khoury is a Board Certified Pediatric Dentist!

According to the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry, your child’s first visit to the dentist should happen before his or her first birthday. The general rule is six months after eruption of the first tooth. Taking your child to the dentist at a young age is the best way to prevent problems such as tooth decay.

While it is true that Primary Teeth, i.e. “Baby Teeth”, will fall out, what most do not realize is that the majority of the primary teeth will not shed before age 10-13. Therefore, it is extremely important to maintain the health of the primary teeth at an early age. Neglected cavities can, and do lead to problems that affect developing the permanent teeth.
Primary teeth are important for proper chewing and eating, development of speech, maintaining space for the permanent teeth, permitting normal development of the jaw bones and muscles, and of course self-esteem.

Children’s teeth begin developing in the womb. Your babies’ first teeth may begin to erupt as early as 4 months, and by and large, all 20 primary teeth have erupted by 3 yrs. of age, although pace and order of eruption varies.

Permanent teeth generally begin to appear around your child’s 6th birthday, and continue until their 21st birthday with the eruption of their wisdom teeth. This is why regular wellness visits are crucial for the health of your child’s permanent teeth.

One form of serious tooth decay among infants and toddlers is called “baby bottle tooth decay”. This is caused by frequent exposure to liquids that contain sugar, including milk, breast milk, formula, fruit juice and other sweetened drinks. If a young child is put to bed for a nap or at nighttime with any drink other than water, it can cause rapid and devastating tooth decay. The sweetened, sugary liquids can pool around the child’s teeth giving the bacteria in plaque the sugar they need to make acid and causes tooth decay.

If feeding your baby at night, wipe the gums and teeth with a damp cloth, tooth wipe or toothbrush afterwards. During the day, for toddlers and older children using sippy cups, offer water only between meals and save other drinks for meal and snack time.

If you must give the baby a bottle as a comforter at bedtime, it should contain only water. If your child won’t fall asleep without the bottle and its usual beverage, gradually dilute the bottle’s contents with water over a period of two to three weeks.

Sippy cups should be used as a training tool from the bottle to a cup and should be discontinued by the first birthday. If your child uses a sippy cup throughout the day, fill the sippy cup with water only. By offering a sippy cup with sugar containing liquids, (including milk, fruit juice, sports drinks, etc.), and allowing a child to drink from it throughout the day, it promotes bacteria to harbor in the mouth and decay to develop.

Sucking is a natural reflex and infants and young children may use thumbs, fingers, pacifiers and other objects on which to suck. In order to avoid long-term skeletal effects of thumb/object sucking, we recommend that the habit be discouraged by three years of age.

A few suggestions to help your child get through thumb sucking:

Please keep in mind that a child must be motivated to stop for any of the below strategies to work.

Keep it positive. It is difficult for a grown up to break a habit, and hard for a child too. Patience and understanding with positive praise when your child is not sucking is best.

• Try to determine the underlying cause and address it. Children tend to suck their thumbs when they are feeling insecure or bored.
• If pacifier use is the issue, try trimming the tip of the pacifier. This will deflate the pacifier and make it less appealing. Gradually trim off more and more until the child no longer wants the pacifier.
• Reading books, such as David Decides, Berenstain Bears and the Bad Habit, or Thumb Love may help.
• A reward calendar where the child can track days they have avoided thumb sucking with marks or stickers. Agree on a motivating reward ahead of time and after 30 consecutive days, enjoy the reward.
• Reminder finger polish, like Mavala, available at Amazon.com, has a bitter taste which serves as a reminder not to place fingers or thumb in the mouth. Mavala is applied regularly 2-3 times a day on the nail and surrounding skin. This helps the child to become aware of their habit to help them to stop.
• Dr.Khoury and her team can encourage your child to stop sucking and explain why it is important to stop the habit too.

Suggestions for nighttime:

Try placing a band-aid on the favorite finger or a sock or mitten gently taped at the base of the favored hand or an ace bandage gently wrapped around an elbow (which prevents the arm from bending at the elbow to get a thumb in). These can be tracked on a reward calendar for each night the child is able to keep it on and dry.

These suggestions are usually enough to successfully stop the habit. If it is not enough, Dr. Khoury can help with other strategies, such as fabricating a habit appliance.

Preventative dentistry is especially important for special needs children and adults. Unlike many of the health issues faced by patients with special needs, dental disease is preventable.

As a parent or caregiver, you may have concerns about your child’s ability to tolerate a dental visit. Please do not postpone dental care. Dr. Khoury is always available to discuss any concerns you may have prior to meeting with you and your child. Treatment is always a team effort, and the sooner we can collaborate the better the outcome. Dr. Khoury and her team are highly experienced in caring for patients with special needs, and are happy to provide the extra TLC you and your child need to feel comfortable.

Some tips to help with oral care:

• Specialized Care Co, Inc. is an excellent resource with educational videos on caring for another person’s teeth, oral care kits and adaptive surround toothbrushes.
• If your child or adult you care for cannot be brushed with toothpaste, due to an inability to spit or gagging, brush with a fluoride rinse.
• Talk to Dr. Khoury for more suggestions, she is happy to make individualized recommendations for your child or adult’s particular needs.

Proper oral hygiene removes bacteria and the left over food particles that combine to create cavities. For infants, use a wet gauze or clean washcloth to wipe the plaque from teeth and gums. Avoid putting your child to bed with a bottle filled with anything other than water.

For older children, brush their teeth at least twice a day, and introduce flossing before age three to ensure excellent oral hygiene. Also, watch the number of snacks containing sugar that you give your children.

The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry recommends visits to the pediatric dentist every six months, beginning at your child’s first birthday. Routine visits will set up your child for a lifetime of good dental health.

Your pediatric dentist may also recommend protective sealants or home fluoride treatments for your child. Sealants can be applied to your child’s molars to prevent decay on hard to clean surfaces.

Once your child’s teeth start erupting, you can begin to clean them by wiping them with a wet washcloth, a tooth wipe or soft child’s toothbrush and a smear of fluoride free baby toothpaste.

Starting at age two or three, you can begin to teach your child to brush. You will still need to brush before or after their turn. Use one hand to draw the cheek away and the other to move the brush in circles or back and forth strokes at a 45 degree angle towards teeth and gums. It is often easiest to allow your child to lay down on your lap while brushing their teeth.

Children brush by themselves when they have the manual dexterity to tie their own shoelaces or write in cursive, usually around ages seven to eight years old. It is still best to supervise their brushing and help as needed. Brushing two times a day is recommended, once after breakfast, and again before bed.

Tooth Brushing should be performed twice a day, using a fluoride toothpaste approved by the American Dental Association. Due to the delicacy of young tooth enamel, toothpastes with harsh abrasives such as whitening toothpaste should be avoided until well into the teen years. It is recommended that for children younger than 3, you place a thin layer of toothpaste that barely covers the bristles like “butter on toast”. For children older than three who are better able to spit, a “pea-sized” amount may be utilized.

If the sides of teeth are touching together, toothbrush bristles cannot reach between to clean. Any spots where teeth are touching should be flossed daily. Baby teeth usually begin to touch around age three, especially between the back molars. Dr. Khoury recommends practicing your flossing techniques with your child as young as two years. In the beginning, a parent will need to floss. As a child gets older, parents can supervise and allow their child to floss. This skill is usually mastered by middle school.

Bacteria in plaque break down sugars to produce acid. If the acid is not removed, the tooth enamel weakens and then breaks down over time, forming a cavity. Brushing and flossing physically remove the sugars, plaque and acid from the teeth.

In order to maintain optimal oral health for your child it is imperative that you focus on what they eat, and more importantly how often they eat it. Fluctuations to the pH of our mouths occur as soon as any food or liquids enter our mouth. It can take up to 20 minutes for our mouths to return to neutral pH. Therefore the more often your child is snacking or “grazing” the higher the risk of dental cavities.

Mouth-Healthy Foods and Drinks

The best food choices for the health of your mouth include cheeses, proteins such as chicken, and nuts. These foods are thought to protect tooth enamel by providing the calcium and phosphorus needed to remineralize teeth (a natural process by which minerals are redeposited in tooth enamel after being removed by acids).

Other food choices include firm/crunchy fruits, (for example, apples and pears,) and vegetables. These foods have a high water content, which dilutes the effects of the sugars they contain, and stimulate the flow of saliva (which helps protect against decay by washing away food particles and buffering acid). Acidic foods, such as citrus fruits, tomatoes, and lemons, should be eaten as part of a larger meal to minimize the acid from them.

Poor food choices include bananas, raisins, and other dried fruits, candy — lollipops, hard candies, and mints — cookies, cakes, pies, breads, muffins, potato chips, pretzels, and french fries. These foods contain large amounts of sugar and/or can stick to teeth, providing a fuel source for bacteria. Be mindful of Gummy Vitamins as well, as these often have sugars to improve tastes and can stick to teeth.

The best beverage choices include water (especially fluoridated water), and milk (in moderation). Limit your consumption of sugar-containing drinks (less than 4 oz. per day for young children), including soft drinks, juice, lemonade, and sports drinks or tea with added sugar. Also, avoid day-long sipping of sugar-containing drinks — day-long sipping exposes your teeth to constant sugar and, in turn, constant decay-causing acids.

A sealant is a protective coating that is applied to the chewing surfaces (grooves) of the back teeth (premolars and molars), where four out of five cavities in children are found. This sealant acts as a barrier to food, plaque and acid, thus protecting the decay-prone areas of the teeth. Due to the fact that sealants are not “drilled” into the tooth, they should be replaced roughly every two-four years.

The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD) recognizes the benefits of xylitol on the oral health of infants, children, adolescents, and persons with special health care needs.
The use of XYLITOL GUM by mothers (2-3 times per day) starting 3 months after delivery and until the child was 2 years old, has proven to reduce cavities up to 70% by the time the child was 5 years old.

Studies using xylitol as either a sugar substitute or a small dietary addition have demonstrated a dramatic reduction in new tooth decay, along with some reversal of existing dental caries. Xylitol provides additional protection that enhances all existing prevention methods. This xylitol effect is long lasting and possibly permanent. Low decay rates persist even years after the trials have been completed.

Xylitol is widely distributed throughout nature in small amounts. Some of the best sources are fruits, berries, mushrooms, lettuce, hardwoods, and corn cobs. One cup of raspberries contains less than one gram of xylitol.

To find gum or other products containing xylitol, try visiting your local health food store or search the Internet to find products containing 100% xylitol.

Fluoride is an element, which has been shown to be beneficial to teeth. However, too little or too much fluoride can be detrimental to the teeth. Little or no fluoride will not strengthen the teeth to help them resist cavities. Excessive fluoride ingestion by preschool-aged children can lead to dental fluorosis, which is a chalky white to even brown discoloration of the permanent teeth. Many children often get more fluoride than their parents realize. Being aware of a child’s potential sources of fluoride can help parents prevent the possibility of dental fluorosis.

Some of these sources are:

• The inappropriate use of fluoride supplements.
• Hidden sources of fluoride in the child’s diet.

Certain foods contain high levels of fluoride, especially powdered concentrate infant formula, soy-based infant formula, infant dry cereals, creamed spinach, and infant chicken products. Please read the label or contact the manufacturer. Some beverages also contain high levels of fluoride, especially decaffeinated teas, white grape juices, and juice drinks manufactured in fluoridated cities.

Parents can take the following steps to decrease the risk of fluorosis in their children’s teeth:

• Place an appropriate amount of fluoride toothpaste on the brush when brushing, (thin layer less than three years, pea sized amount older than three years).
• Account for all of the sources of ingested fluoride before requesting fluoride supplements from your child’s physician or pediatric dentist.
• Avoid giving any fluoride-containing supplements to infants until they are at least 6 months old.
• Obtain fluoride level test results for your drinking water before giving fluoride supplements to your child (check with local water utilities).

Radiographs, (X-Rays) are a vital and necessary part of your child’s dental diagnostic process. Without them, certain dental conditions can and will be missed.

Radiographs detect much more than cavities. They assist in evaluating the eruption of teeth, diagnosis of bone diseases, aid in the assessment of an injury, or plan orthodontic treatment. Radiographs allow dentists to diagnose and treat health conditions that cannot be detected during a clinical examination. If dental problems are found and treated early, dental care is more comfortable for your child and more affordable for you.

At “The Brush Stop”, we are particularly careful to minimize the exposure of our patients to radiation, by utilizing the most advanced, digital x-rays units that emit the lowest possible amount of radiation in the industry. With contemporary safeguards, the amount of radiation received in a dental X-ray examination is negligible. In fact, the dental radiographs represent a far smaller risk than an undetected and untreated dental problem. Lead body aprons and shields will protect your child. Today’s equipment filters out unnecessary x-rays and restricts the x-ray beam to the area of interest. High-speed film and proper shielding assure that your child receives a minimal amount of radiation exposure.

Parents are welcome to accompany their child for treatment visits. If you choose to be present, we suggest the following In Office Parent Guidelines:

Children do much better when they know what to expect. We use the TELL SHOW DO method. We TELL your child about the procedure, in an age appropriate manner. Next we SHOW, which introduces the procedure in an exploratory way to examine the sound, smell, sight or sensations. Then we DO the treatment, carefully following each step as described.

Kid Friendly Term and Matching Instrument/Procedure

• Jelly = topical anesthetic
• Tooth pillow = bite block
• Astronaut nose/ elephant nose = nitrous oxide
• Sleepy Juice= Anesthetic
• Princess tooth/ Superhero tooth = crown
• Mr. Thirsty/ straw = suction
• Sugar Bug = Cavity
• Flash light = curing light
• Tickle brush = prophy cup
• Whistle brush = high speed handpiece
• Bouncy brush = slow speed handpiece

We ask that you avoid using words that could generate fear, such as “needle” or “shot”, “hurt” or “won’t hurt” and “don’t be afraid”.

We welcome parents to be near during treatment; however, it is important that Dr. Khoury and her team are given the chance to establish a closer rapport with your child. Our purpose is to gain your child’s confidence and overcome apprehension. For many children, the voice of a parent will always be the one they choose to hear. Thus, we kindly ask for your help by being a quiet observer in the room and allowing your child to focus their attention on Dr. Khoury and her team. To support this, we ask that you remain behind the dental chair out of direct view. We have provided seating directly behind every operatory so that you may be present, and ensure your child’s safety, while allowing us to create a trusting bond with your child. For the safety and privacy of all patients, other children who are not being treated must remain in the reception room with a supervising adult.

These are ways that you can actively help make your child’s visit a success.

Developing malocclusions, or bad bites, can be recognized as early as 2-3 years of age. Often, early steps can be taken to reduce the need for major orthodontic treatment at a later age. Many minor issues can be treated as young as 5 years of age; however, for more extensive treatment, we follow the recommendations of the American Association of Orthodontics, that children should be evaluated for full comprehensive orthodontics by age 7.

Once a child begins to participate in recreational activities and organized sports, injuries can occur. A properly fitted mouth guard, or mouth protector, is an important piece of athletic gear that can help protect your child’s developing jaw and smile, and should be used during any activity that could result in a blow to the face or mouth.

Mouth guards assist in the prevention of broken teeth, and injuries to the lips, tongue, face or jaw. A properly fitted mouth guard will stay in place while your child is wearing it, making it easy for them to talk and breathe.

Ask Dr. Khoury about how we can help make a custom mouth protector for pre-teen/teen.

Tobacco in any form can jeopardize your child’s health and cause incurable damage.

According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 90% of smokers began before the age 19, and every day, almost 3,900 adolescents under 18 years of age try their first cigarette.

Teen smokers are also more likely to have panic attacks, anxiety disorders and depression.

Smokeless tobacco, also called spit, chew or snuff, is often used by teens that believe that it is a safe alternative to smoking cigarettes. This is an unfortunate misconception. Studies show that spit tobacco may be more addictive than smoking cigarettes and may be more difficult to quit. Teens who use it may be interested to know that one can of snuff per day delivers as much nicotine as 60 cigarettes. In as little as three to four months, smokeless tobacco use can cause periodontal disease and produce pre-cancerous lesions called leukoplakias.

Because the early signs of oral cancer usually are not painful, people often ignore them. If it’s not caught in the early stages, oral cancer can require extensive, sometimes disfiguring, surgery. Even worse, it can kill.

Help your child avoid tobacco in any form, by teaching your child about the dangers of tobacco early on. By doing so, they will avoid bringing cancer-causing chemicals in direct contact with their tongue, gums and cheek.

While intra-oral piercings have become part of pop-culture, you might be surprised to know just how dangerous these piercings can be.

These piercings harbor many risks, including chipped or cracked teeth, blood clots, blood poisoning, heart infections, brain abscess, nerve disorders (trigeminal neuralgia), receding gums or scar tissue. Your mouth contains millions of bacteria, and infection is a common complication of oral piercing. Your tongue could swell large enough to close off your airway!

Common symptoms after piercing include pain, swelling, infection, an increased flow of saliva and injuries to gum tissue. Difficult-to-control bleeding or nerve damage can result if a blood vessel or nerve bundle is in the path of the needle.

So follow the advice of the American Dental Association and give your mouth a break – skip the mouth jewelry.

If your child is seemingly tired throughout the day, displays bags or dark under-eye circles, frequently experience nasal congestion, breaths through their mouth, or wakes up multiple times in the middle of the night, they may be suffering from sleep apnea. The next time your child falls asleep, observe to see if they are breathing through their nose or through their mouth. Mouth breathing with snoring or grinding, may be indicators of sleep apnea.

Sleep apnea is a condition in which a person’s breathing repeatedly stops during sleep. It is more commonly seen in adults, but children suffer from it as well.

It may be caused by an obstruction in the airway, such as enlarged adenoids and tonsils, or the size of the airway, or tongue muscle tone or nasal congestion. Left untreated in children, it can hinder growth and development, and can cause detrimental damage to the heart, brain and other organs.

A child who breathes through their mouth usually does not sleep well. This tiredness can affect energy levels, school performance, and can cause behavior and attention problems that may be misdiagnosed. If sleep apnea goes untreated, dental health issues such as a long face, gummy smile, gingivitis, narrow palate, crossbites and misaligned teeth may result as well.

Dr. Khoury is trained to assess your child’s airway and will work with an ear-nose-throat doctor (ENT), pediatric sleep specialist or orthodontist for corrective treatment. An overnight sleep study and/or an x-ray of the child’s head and neck to see whether the airway is too narrow or blocked, may be indicated to further diagnose. If an airway obstruction is present, removing tonsils or other airway obstructions can help. Weight management, medicines to relieve nasal congestion, special appliances to expand the arches and positional therapy, may be helpful to open your child’s airway for proper rest, growth and development.

Nothing is more stressful than a child with an injury. What’s worse, most injuries occur at the most inopportune times! We completely understand, and that is why we have introduced the ToothPIC! When your child experiences a dental injury, and you aren’t sure whether it needs to be addressed right away feel free to call our office, or “snap a pic” with your phone and email us! We are available to you 24 hours a day 7 days a week.

Inspect the tooth for any lodged food or debris. Evaluate the timing of the toothache, and document.

• Does it hurt most when child is eating or drinking?
• Is it sensitive when they bite down?
• Is the gum tissue red or swollen?
• Is the pain spontaneous and keeping them up at night?

Answers to these questions allow your pediatric dentist to give a more accurate diagnosis.

Apply ice to injured areas to help control swelling. If there is bleeding, apply firm but gentle pressure with a gauze or cloth. In many instances, there is no need for further treatment, but if bleeding cannot be controlled by simple pressure, call a doctor or visit the hospital emergency room.

Contact your pediatric dentist during business hours. This is not usually an emergency, and in most cases, no treatment is necessary.

If possible, find the tooth. Time is of the essence for these emergencies, and your pediatric dentist should see the child WITHIN 1 HOUR for best chance of success. Hold the tooth by the crown, not by the root. You may GENTLY rinse the tooth with water only. DO NOT clean with soap, scrub or handle the tooth unnecessarily. Inspect the tooth for fractures. If it is sound, try to reinsert it in the socket. If you cannot reinsert the tooth, transport the tooth in a cup containing the patient’s saliva or milk until you can see your dentist.

Contact your pediatric dentist.

Time is an essential factor here if the nerve of the tooth is exposed; therefore, contact your pediatric dentist immediately. Taking appropriate steps early can prevent infection and reduce the need for extensive dental treatment. If possible, locate and save any broken tooth fragments and bring them with you to the dentist.

Take your child to the nearest hospital emergency room immediately.

Keep the jaw from moving and take your child to the nearest hospital emergency room.

Often, children do not understand the effects of local anesthesia, and may chew, scratch, suck, or play with the numb lip, tongue, or cheek. These actions can often cause swelling and abrasions to the tissue if severe enough.

Monitor your child closely for approximately two hours following the appointment. Please ensure that child does not bite or suck on lip, check or tongue. It is often wise to keep your child on a liquid or soft diet until the anesthetic has worn off.

Please do not hesitate to call the office if there are any questions.

• Keep your child away from sticky, chewy, hard, or crunchy foods, such as gum, caramels, Milk Duds, licorice, gummy bears, jelly beans, beef jerky, nuts, popcorn, ice, hard candies, jaw breakers, and corn on the cob, as these can break down the cement or distort the wires of the space maintainer.
• Tell your child to avoid pulling on or poking the wire(s).
• If your child’s space maintainer comes loose or breaks, call our office so we can evaluate and decide whether the appliance needs to be reinforced or rebuilt.

• Your child should have a soft diet the remainder of the day.
• The gums may appear red and feel sore after the placement of the crown. This is normal and should improve within a week. If child indicates their gums are sore, administer Children’s Tylenol, or Motrin as directed on the bottle.
• Keep the area clean with brushing and flossing. Dental plaque should be removed with brushing. The gums may bleed initially. This is normal and brushing should not be discontinued if this occurs.
• Your child may describe the crowns as feeling different. Speech and bite may temporarily be affected. Please allow time for your child to acclimate to their new crown.
• Your child may have initial sensitivity to hot or cold foods and/or liquids. This will subside over a few weeks as the tooth acclimates to the new crown/s.
• Your child should avoid sticky candies, gums, etc. They may weaken the adhesive cement that was used to permanently place the crown on the prepared tooth. If the crown does come off, save the crown and call our office. Do not wait too long as the tooth without the crown may move in the mouth and require the tooth to be re-prepared for a new crown; if a crown is left off a tooth too long it can result in tooth loss.

• Please keep the traumatized area as clean as possible. A soft wash cloth often works well during healing to aid the process.
• Watch for darkening of traumatized teeth. This could be an indication of a dying nerve (pulp).
• If the swelling should re-occur, our office needs to see the patient as-soon-as possible. Ice should be administered during the first 24 hours to keep the swelling to a minimum.
• Watch for infection (gum boils) in the area of trauma. If infection is noticed – call the office so the patient can be seen as-soon-as possible.
• Maintain a soft diet for two to three days, or until the child feels comfortable eating normally again.
• Avoid sweets or foods that are extremely hot or cold.
• If antibiotics or pain medicines are prescribed, be sure to follow the prescription as directed.

Please do not hesitate to call the office if there are any questions.

• Do not scratch, chew, suck, or rub the lips, tongue, or cheek while they feel numb or asleep. The child should be watched closely so he/she does not injure his/her lip, tongue, or cheek before the anesthesia wears off.
• Do not rinse the mouth for several hours.
• Do not spit excessively.
• Do not drink a carbonated beverage (Coke, Sprite, etc.) for the remainder of the day.
• Do not drink through a straw.
• Keep fingers and tongue away from the extraction area.

Bleeding – Some bleeding is to be expected. If unusual or sustained bleeding occurs, place cotton gauze firmly over the extraction area and bite down or hold in place for fifteen minutes. This can also be accomplished with a tea bag. Repeat if necessary.

• Maintain a soft diet for a day or two, or until the child feels comfortable eating normally again.
• Avoid strenuous exercise or physical activity for several hours after the extraction.

Pain – For discomfort use Children’s Tylenol, Advil, or Motrin as directed for the age of the child. If a medicine was prescribed, then follow the directions on the bottle.

Please do not hesitate to call the office if there are any questions.

By forming a thin covering over the pits and fissures, sealants keep out plaque and food, thus decreasing the risk of decay. Since, the covering is only over the biting surface of the tooth, areas on the side and between teeth cannot be coated with the sealant. Good oral hygiene and nutrition are still very important in preventing decay next to these sealants or in areas unable to be covered. Due to the fact that sealants are not “drilled” into the tooth, poor oral hygiene, sticky or sugary foods, and normal wear and tear can ultimately break down sealants. It is recommended that they are evaluated at every visit, and may require replacement every few years.

Your child should refrain from eating ice or hard candy, which tend to fracture the sealant. Regular dental appointments are recommended in order for your child’s dentist to be certain the sealants remain in place.

The American Dental Association recognizes that sealants can play an important role in the prevention of tooth decay. When properly applied and maintained, they can successfully protect the chewing surfaces of your child’s teeth. A total prevention program includes regular visits to the dentist, the use of fluoride, daily brushing and flossing, and limiting the number of times sugar-rich foods are eaten. If these measures are followed and sealants are used on the child’s teeth, the risk of decay can be reduced or may even be eliminated!

According to the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD), every child should be seen by a pediatric dentist no later than one (1) year of age. Getting an early start may lead to detection of early stages of tooth decay that can be easily treated, stopped or even reversed. Regular dental care is an important step on the road to teaching your child healthy habits for life.

Dental decay is the single most common chronic childhood disease- 5 times more common than asthma. The most important reason to see a dentist so early is to begin a thorough prevention program. Dental problems can begin early, and once a child’s diet includes anything other than breast-milk, erupting teeth are at risk for decay. The earlier the dental visit, the better the chance of preventing dental problems. Like a “well baby” check up visit at the pediatrician, the first visit allows for counseling and guidance that lays the groundwork for your child to have a healthy smile for life.