Pediatric Dentistry
Pediatric Dental Services
Our doctors believe that a trip to the dentist should be fun and lighthearted, not something to fear. The way your child is exposed to dentistry lays the groundwork for how they view dental care and dental visits for the rest of their lives.
Our doctors and their team love caring for their patients, and work hard to make sure each child is spoken to gently, treated with respect, and cared for as if they were our own child. We use simple words to explain procedures to our patients and make sure each parent or guardian is aware of the process as well.
Our Pediatric Services
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Studies have shown that the earlier a child receives their first dental exam, the less dental treatment was needed during their youth. We recommend oral exams for children when their first tooth erupts.
Following the recommendations of the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry, our doctors suggests infants should come in for their first oral exam between the ages of six months to 1 year old.
Our doctors will review proper diet, age-appropriate hygiene, and go over pacifier use to make sure your child’s oral health starts strong and stays strong.
Routine cleanings and exams are necessary to make sure your child’s teeth stay healthy throughout childhood. Our doctors recommend two cleanings a year to maintain optimal oral health.
Preventive care is one of the simplest and most important ways to ensure your child’s teeth grow strong and healthy. Giving them the proper tools and teaching them the right way to brush when they are young lays the groundwork for healthy habits they will carry with them into adulthood.
Most children have two cleanings a year, but children with a higher risk of caries may need more frequent visits.
During a checkup, your child’s hygienist will clean their teeth and, if necessary, take x-rays and give your child a fluoride treatment. The dentist will perform an exam and review any needed treatment.
Digital X-rays allow our doctor to get a view of your child’s teeth and jaws that they can’t see with their eyes, while keeping radiation exposure to a minimum.
X-rays also help diagnose cavities while they are tiny, often allowing for less invasive treatment. If caught early enough, decay may be stopped with some minor changes to your child’s home care routine.
Using digital X-rays, our doctors can look for teeth that haven’t erupted yet, make sure your child’s jaws and teeth are developing well, and monitor whether orthodontic treatment will be needed in the future.
Today’s digital X-rays expose your child to less radiation than ever before. Lead aprons and taking X-rays only when necessary further reduce your child’s exposure.
Regular fluoride treatments help reduce your child’s risk of developing cavities and can remineralize areas where decay is starting. Our doctors believe regular fluoride treatments are an important part of treatment for most children.
Topical fluoride treatments help keep your child’s teeth cavity-free between visits by strengthening the enamel. Depending on your child’s age, the fluoride may be brushed onto your child’s teeth or put into a foam tray and allowed to sit on their teeth. For younger children, a fluoride varnish is brushed onto the teeth. Fluoride varnish hardens when it comes in contact with saliva, forming a hard film that is brushed off later that evening.
Older children usually have a tray loaded with foam fluoride placed in their mouths for a specific amount of time along with a suction straw to remove any foam overflow and saliva. When the time is up, your child is told not to eat or drink for at least 30 minutes to allow the fluoride to work.
Our doctors and their hygiene team are happy to answer all your questions about fluoride treatments and treatment options.