We know that taking your kids to a dental check-up is never easy. Our child-friendly environment will encourage your child to look forward to their next appointment. The latest American guidelines for Pediatric Dentistry recommend that parents should bring their child to the dentist as soon as the first teeth appear — usually at around 6 months or at least before their 1st birthday. Early visits to the dental hospital will help children to develop proper brushing habits and preventive care for dental decay.
Children begin to get their baby teeth during the first 6 months of life. By 6 or 7 years, they start to lose their first set of teeth, which are eventually replaced by permanent teeth. At 6-12 years they will have a mixed dentition. Though the milk teeth will shed off in few years, any decay or damage in milk teeth needs to be addressed timely as it may affect the permanent teeth developing inside the bone, if the infection spreads. Also, retaining the primary molars (back teeth) till the age of 10-12 is very important for the development of permanent teeth.
If detected and treated early, they can be restored with tooth-coloured materials. If the damage is deep, in most cases, Primary teeth can be saved and retained by procedures like pulpotomy and pulpectomy, which are pulpal therapies done in children. After the procedure, strip crowns or 3D-printed resin crowns are given for front teeth and preformed metal crowns, or customised aesthetic resin crowns or hybrid crowns are given for back teeth.
Even if the tooth is in a condition that it can’t be saved, removal of that tooth can be done and a small appliance (space maintainer) can be given there to maintain that space for the future teeth, so that they can erupt into proper position and the jaw growth is not affected.
Often, children acquire or retain certain habits like thumb sucking, tongue thrusting ( pushing teeth with tongue), mouth breathing, etc. that can adversely affect the proper development of their teeth and related structures and lead to malalignment of their teeth in future. It is important to stop these habits and guide the development of teeth and jaws in the proper direction.
The tendency to have improperly positioned teeth or jaws can be predicted at a young age itself.
Our well-experienced Pediatric dentist will suggest the appropriate habit breaking appliances or growth modifying devices that can redirect the growth of jaws of kids, to limit the need of orthodontic treatments or corrective jaw surgeries in the future .
Very uncooperative children can be given conscious sedation or general anaesthesia for completing their procedure hassle-free.
