Clinident paediatric dentistry – expert care for little ones too

5 children’s dental problems that need a dentist

• If a baby tooth is injured or knocked in an accident:

A serious knock to a baby tooth may also affect the buds of the permanent teeth. After an accident, it is important for a paediatric dentist to see and treat the teeth.

• If the gum around a baby tooth is swollen, red or sensitive:

Careless brushing or an injury caused by the toothbrush can cause these symptoms. In more serious cases, however, trapped food can cause pus-filled gums in children too. It is worth showing it to a dentist.

Why are children’s dental check-ups important, and what can happen without them?

A beautiful, healthy smile in adulthood is also thanks to care in childhood!

Why is paediatric dental care especially important?

• It helps prevent more serious, more painful problems: Without treatment, a bad baby tooth can endanger the health, or even the presence, of the permanent teeth.

• It helps avoid bad dental experiences: A dental problem detected early can be treated with less effort, even without the child noticing, while a neglected decayed tooth causes the child serious pain and an unpleasant experience.

• It contributes to children’s healthy physical and emotional development: Alongside healthy teeth, it supports wellbeing and self-confidence, so healthy teeth also help our child grow into a balanced, confident adult.

What can happen without children’s dental check-ups and treatment?

Because of bad habits, improper brushing and neglecting dental check-ups, many people undergo serious dental treatment even as teenagers: unpleasant drilling, root canal treatment and fillings, and often even tooth extraction may become necessary.

As parents, we want our children not to be shocked or paralysed by fear of the dentist, and for this it is important to know that:

• We don’t inherit bad teeth from our parents – only bad oral hygiene habits!
• There are no straight adult teeth free of gum inflammation without proper oral care and regular scaling.
• With proper dental care, regular dental check-ups and orthodontic treatment, dental problems after the change of teeth in childhood can be prevented, and with them early tooth loss and major dental problems in adulthood can be avoided.

Types of paediatric dental treatment

1. Scaling, even for baby teeth

The scaling process is similar to that for adults, and it is indeed often necessary even for little ones. Later, during orthodontic treatment for children, cleaning and polishing the teeth becomes especially important, as it is important that teeth do not decay under fixed braces.

2. Fissure sealing to protect permanent teeth

One of the most important tools of prevention. Paediatric dentists recommend it for molars that are very difficult to clean thoroughly because of their deep grooves.

By filling the deep grooves with fissure sealing, we get a shallower chewing surface that is easy to clean, which can prevent or stop early decay.

3. Fillings for baby teeth

Treating a decayed baby tooth is extremely important, and dentists use a filling material with a special composition for this.

4. Root canal treatment for baby teeth

Just as with adults, if decay is so extensive that the baby tooth does not settle down and continues to hurt or become inflamed, root canal treatment for the baby tooth, carried out according to a special protocol, is needed.

Eliminating the inflammation is important, as not only can the permanent tooth be damaged, but it also puts a strain on the immune system.

5. Extracting baby teeth

If help comes too late, or root canal treatment does not help, it is better to remove the tooth and then concentrate on maintaining good oral hygiene. Baby tooth extractions are also carried out as part of our paediatric dentistry service.

6. Space maintainer – after extraction

Baby teeth are also very important because they hold the space for the permanent teeth that follow. So if they are extracted early, it is worth replacing this function with a space maintainer, so that there are no problems when the new tooth erupts.

7. Orthodontics for children – when should we start?

Orthodontic treatment can be divided into several age groups, as a different type of treatment and different braces are needed for baby teeth, for mixed dentition, and for treating the permanent teeth of a teenager.

So at our clinic, our dentists can help not only with treating bite problems, crowding and protruding teeth, but also with breaking bad habits even at nursery age.

Children’s dental problems – Advice from a paediatric dentist for home

Unfortunately, parents tend to give in to children when it comes to skipping brushing before bed or having a few more sweets.

Yet you are not a bad parent if you put a stop to endless snacking, teach proper brushing and don’t give in when brushing is refused with a tantrum! Creating a healthy environment for children’s teeth is always the parents’ responsibility.

Advice from paediatric dentists for parents:

• Regularity: Visit the dentist from the appearance of the first teeth, and from nursery age paediatric dental check-ups should definitely become a regular habit.
• Dental care at home: Follow the personalised oral care habits recommended by the paediatric dentist, and help your child with them.
• Diet: Aim for a balanced and healthy diet for your child, and pay attention to adequate mineral intake too.
• Pain relief: If there is a problem, children can be given toothache medicine or painkillers, which can prevent more severe pain and inflammation. It is important to discuss the dosage with your GP or dentist, and to go for a dental examination even if the pain goes away in the meantime.

The most common myths about children’s teeth

Healthy baby teeth are vital if we want healthy permanent teeth. As young children we have twenty baby teeth in total, and their importance is much greater than it may seem at first.

Myth: Baby teeth are not as important as permanent teeth

It is extremely important that the health of the little teeth is maintained right up to the change of teeth! Poor oral hygiene can lead to the need for many dental treatments.

Keeping baby teeth healthy is always the parents’ responsibility:

• Baby teeth are what hold the space for the permanent teeth that erupt later.
• From the appearance of the first teeth (at about 6 months), it is necessary to clean the baby’s teeth regularly, as the sugar in breast milk is also an excellent breeding ground for decay.
• Playful brushing can start from as early as 18 months (when the baby molars appear), using a pea-sized amount of children’s toothpaste.

Myth: Fluoride is harmful in childhood

Baby teeth do need care, sometimes even with fluoride.

• If we leave fluoride treatment of the teeth to the dentist, it can very effectively help strengthen the teeth and build their resistance without harmful side effects.

Myth: Treating a decayed baby tooth is pointless, as it will fall out anyway

Young children also deserve more attention when it comes to dental treatment. Adults often don’t take warnings about decay in baby teeth seriously, even though keeping little teeth healthy is primarily the parent’s responsibility.

It is important to know that baby teeth are made of different material from permanent teeth. They are less resistant, and because of their weaker structure they decay easily and can quickly become inflamed.

• It is good to know that decayed baby teeth can hurt just as much as the permanent teeth that replace them. Furthermore, permanent teeth can only erupt healthily if the child’s mouth is free of harmful bacteria.

• Unfortunately, a decayed and neglected baby tooth infects the bud of the permanent tooth, which then needs treatment as soon as it erupts. So with a bad baby tooth it is extremely important not to put off seeing the dentist in the hope that it will fall out on its own.

Myth: Why take my child to the dentist unnecessarily if their tooth doesn’t hurt?

We expose our children to unpleasant experiences if, instead of prevention and getting to know the dentist, their very first dental experience is about pain and treatment.

• If we only go to the dentist when there is a problem, the dental visit is remembered as a bad experience.
• A bad experience fundamentally influences their attitude to dentistry as adults, just as it did for most of us adults.

Paediatric dentistry in District 13 – What does Clinident children’s dentistry offer?

Our clinic has experienced dentists with more than 10 years of paediatric dentistry experience and communication skills specialised for children. Our aim is for children to learn proper oral care in time, so that they don’t have to see the dentist more often than necessary.