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Pediatric Dentist

Dec 25

Baby Bottle Tooth Decay

By Pediatric Dentist

Baby bottle tooth decay is the term used when infants and toddlers get decay in their teeth—even though the teeth are temporary.

Why should you be concerned about decay in a child’s temporary teeth? Teeth affect the ability to chew, speak properly, and to have a healthy-looking smile. Healthy first teeth affect healthy adult teeth.

If babies or toddlers are put in bed with a bottle, or if they drink lots of sugary drinks, tooth decay is promoted. Inadequate fluoride also promotes tooth decay.

What can you do to keep your baby’s teeth and gums healthy? Avoid filling his or her bottle with sugar water, sugary juices or soda. Before teeth erupt, after feeding, wipe his or her gums with a clean, soft damp cloth. Avoid giving him or her sugary snacks.

When teeth erupt, brush them with a pea-sized amount of fluoride toothpaste. As your child’s dexterity improves, teach him or her to practice good oral hygiene. Teach your child to brush and floss his or her teeth.

When teeth appear, have a dentist examine your child’s teeth and gums. Don’t take temporary tooth for granted.

 

This post is sponsored by Naperville dentist Dr. Anthony LaVacca.

Jun 07

Should my son’s baby teeth be extracted

By Pediatric Dentist

I have a 2o month old little boy. He recently had an injury that affected his front teeth. There is now green discoloration on them. I’ve heard that could be because I gave him a bottle, but I didn’t give him one often, so I think it is from the injury. Do I need to have his front teeth extracted? If so, how do I keep his other teeth from shifting?

Francis in Wyoming

Francis,

Bottle feeding doesn’t actually cause discoloration. It can cause tooth decay if you put them to bed with a bottle, because then the formula just sits on their teeth. The green discoloration is probably from bacteria. It is not unusual for children to get weird stains on their teeth. As their body adapts to their environment, it goes away naturally. I would just take your son to a dentist to have his teeth cleaned and examined.

If you had his teeth extracted, you could have space maintainers placed in order to keep his other teeth from shifting. However, I don’t recommend extraction because he’ll need his teeth for proper speech development. Go see a good pediatric dentist and then take it from there.

This blog is brought to you by Naperville Dentist Dr. Anthony LaVacca.

You may be interested to read more about Baby Bottle Tooth Decay.

Dec 26

Baby molar extraction

By Pediatric Dentist

My six year old has two infected and broken molars. Both are baby teeth. They broke because of decay. Our dentist wants us to pull the teeth. Is that ok? Why not do a root canal?

Karen S.- Florida

Karen,

When an adult tooth is infected, we do a root canal. However, root canals rarely work for baby teeth, especially baby molars. Extracting the teeth is the right thing to do. I assume your dentist is going to place one or two space maintainers after the extraction. If he or she is not planning on doing that, and didn’t recommend it, I suggest finding a different pediatric dentist.

Space maintaners are very important in these circumstances. At her age, her permanent first molars have either just erumpted or are about to erupt.  Without the space maintainers they will drift forward and block her permanent premolars. If this happens they could erupt sideways or not at all.

This blog is brought to you by the Naperville pediatric dentists of ndscare.com

Jul 30

First Dental Visit

By Pediatric Dentist

I’m about to take my son to his first dental appointment. I wondered what your opinion is as to how to prepare him. He’s three years old and likes to know things ahead of time, but I’m not sure how much to say.

Deanna D.- Tallahassee

Deanna,

It is fantastic that you are being so proactive with your son’s dental care. My suggestion is when you bring up his dental appointment, don’t make a big deal out of it. If you treat it as a normal part of his dental hygiene, like brushing, he’ll be less uptight. Children sense when we are nervous and it makes them nervous as well. You could simply say that he is going to get a special cleaning for his teeth and leave it at that. Of course, answer any questions he has, but keep the tone upbeat and simple.

You want his first appointment to be before he has any dental issues. Focus his preparation on hygiene training. Brushing his teeth should be mandatory. There are plenty of ways to make this fun, instead of a battle.  You can play games together, or get stickers. Whatever works best for him. This way his first appointment will be a good experience, instead of dealing with a cavity.

Equally as important as preparation for the appointment is choosing the dentist. There are many great pediatric dentists available. However, there are also great general dentists who are qualified and love treating children. It is convenient to have the whole family seen in the same office. You want it to be a dentist who is comfortable with and enjoys children.  One way to tell if a dentist is comfortable treating children is the age they prefer to see them. If they prefer to wait until they are over seven, that is a sign they’re not comfortable around children. On the other hand, if they’ll see children as young as one you can tell they are comfortable with them and enjoy treating them. Some dentists do not allow parents in the treatment room, so if that is important to you or your child, you should ask the office ahead of time about their policy.

You may also be interested on our page on Tooth Decay Treatment and Prevention.

This blog is brought to you by Naperville Cosmetic Dentist Dr. Anthony LaVacca.

 

Jan 11

My Baby’s teeth are not falling out.

By Pediatric Dentist

It looks like my 6 year old son has his second set of teeth coming in, but he hasn’t lost his baby teeth yet. In fact his baby teeth aren’t even loose. Should I wait until the baby teeth loosen, or do you think I should take him to the dentist to have them removed?

Monica from Columbus, OH

Monica,

If your son’s baby teeth have not fallen out yet, and if they are not loose enough to jiggle them out yourself, then you should take your son to the dentist to have them removed before his permanent teeth come in.

If you can see the permanent teeth coming in but the baby teeth haven’t fallen out, and you can’t jiggle them out yourself, I’d take your son to a dentist and have the dentist take them out. The baby teeth can redirect his permanent teeth if they’re prevented from coming out the way they should.

At Naperville Dental Specialist, we specialize in pediatric dentistry. Learn more dental care for children and explore our website here.

Sep 08

Decayed Baby Teeth

By Pediatric Dentist

We took our 6-year-old son to the dentist, because we were concerned about his two baby molars that had broken due to cavities and decay. After the dentist examined my son’s teeth, he recommended extracting the molars right away. Should we follow our dentist’s advice?

Adele from Boston

Adele,

Our method of treatment for infected adult teeth is to do a root canal, but since your son’s molars are still baby teeth, they should be extracted right away.  This is to prevent infection from spreading further into the gums and bone, which could then have an effect on the development of his permanent teeth.

Read more about pediatric dentistry and about our dedication to children and adult oral health.

May 13

Should I see another dentist to fix my son’s teeth?

By Dental Bonding, Pediatric Dentist

My 10-year-old son fell off his bike yesterday and broke his upper front tooth and cracked another one horizontally. Thankfully, we managed to get him in to see the dentist. However, the dentist said he was unable to fix his teeth until next month. He also said that we should wait a few weeks to allow the root to desensitize. Is this waiting period standard procedure, or should I find another dentist?

-Jennifer from Texas

Jennifer,

You shouldn’t have to wait to fix your son’s teeth.

If you happened to find the piece of tooth that was broken off, it can still be reattached. Find a good cosmetic dentist to do this procedure though. You’ll want someone who knows how to match the other front tooth, and this requires someone who has excellent aesthetic dental skills.

If you don’t have the broken piece of tooth to reattach, then direct dental bonding can be used to repair the tooth. In time, the pulp will become smaller as your son ages, so depending on the extent of damage to both teeth, he may need a single crown or more.

Learn more about pediatric dentistry and about kid’s basic dental care.

Feb 08

Will my son’s baby teeth return to their normal color after bumping them?

By Pediatric Dentist

My 4-year-old son fell and injured his top front teeth. After the fall, I noticed his teeth began to change color. Will it help if I change his diet?

Tammy in Ontario

Dear Tammy,

Since he is four, these will be your son’s baby teeth. There really isn’t much you can do to get them to return to their normal color. I would get the teeth checked, though. The discoloration to your son’s two front teeth may be from the tissue inside dying, and that will need to be treated. They may also be perfectly healthy, and the darkening may be from a natural buildup of dentin inside the teeth, which is provoked by the injury.

Changing your son’s diet won’t be of any help either.

It will only be a matter of two to three years more years until your son’s front teeth naturally fall out, and then his adult teeth will begin to come in.

Learn more about pediatric dentistry by clicking here.

Nov 18

Is it necessary to have my child’s baby teeth pulled?

By Pediatric Dentist No Comments

Not long ago, my 20 month old son took quite a fall and injured his four front teeth. Shortly after, I noticed that these same teeth began to lose their enamel and turn to a funny shade of green. My child’s health is very important to me, so I make sure he eats healthy and takes a children’s multi-vitamin daily. I‘ve even avoided giving him a bottle or pacifier. I hate the thought of having his teeth pulled but I may not have a choice. What should I do?

 – Stacy from Naperville

Stacy,

Before you make an assumption about your son’s teeth, my best advice I can give you is take your son to a pediatric dentist for a dental examination.

As children develop, their bodies become exposed to various types of environmental bacteria. While children’s immune systems naturally fight off germs, they can still occasionally be affected. Your son’s baby teeth may have been exposed to bacteria, which could be the cause of the green discoloration. This discoloration may naturally fade away in time, but it is best to find out what is causing it.

Providing good health and nutrition for your child is necessary, so I commend you for your good efforts. Here at Naperville Dental Specialists, we promote good health and nutrition as well by encouraging parents to bring their children in as soon as the baby teeth begin to appear. This will encourage a close relationship between your child, the dentists and staff.

If  the trauma to your son’s teeth has damaged and severed the nerves, then these teeth may have to be removed. But if the teeth have not suffered damage it is best to leave them be, especially at the age of 20 months. Teeth play an important role in your child’s speech development.

Related information: read about baby bottle tooth decay.

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