Choosing The Right Dentist For Your Children
The condition of your children's dental health can have great effects on their health later in life
. Taking proper care of your children's teeth and gums at an early age can help prevent serious dental problems later, and it establishes a routine of preventative care for the life of the child. The selection of a dentist to treat your children's oral health should be handled on the same level as selection of your children's pediatrician to treat your children's medical health.
Specialists in Pediatric Dentistry:
A children's dentist, or Specialist in Pediatric Dentistry, is specially licensed and trained to treat children and infants. Specific training in the area of children's behavior allows Pediatric Dentists to help children feel comfortable and at ease during the dental visit. Children's dentistry is different than that of adults in many ways: the teeth and jaw are still developing, the eruption of baby teeth and permanent teeth need to be monitored (even before they are visible) to avoid problems, children's sucking habits (pacifiers, thumb or fingers) can affect a child's dental health and need to be reviewed. Proper space needs to be analyzed for the permanent teeth to come in.
Children typically respond to treatment best in the morning when they are the freshest, and they are usually more comfortable with shorter appointments. Since Specialists in Pediatric Dentistry only treat children, their practice is geared entirely around children. Most Pediatric Dentists work closely with an orthodontist if a child needs to be referred for orthodontic evaluation and/or treatment.
Your Child's Dental Health:
Parents should schedule their children's first dental visit by their first birthday, as recommended by the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry. With early dental visits, your children's dentist will examine your child's mouth and make recommendations regarding keeping the teeth and gums clean, diet, fluoride, and any oral habits such as thumb sucking. A Specialist in Pediatric Dentistry will be able to answer any questions or concerns you have regarding your child's dental health.
Dental Treatment for Kids:
Most dental treatment for children is preventative in nature. It is extremely important that children see the dentist on a regular basis for examinations, professional dental cleanings, and fluoride treatments. In the event there is decay or any other dental diagnosis, the Specialist in Pediatric Dentistry will restore the teeth in a manner that is comfortable for the patient and best for the long term dental health.
Children, who have built a comfortable and confident patient relationship with a Specialist in Pediatric Dentistry, approach dental treatment much more at ease than other children. Unfortunately, dental accidents sometimes happen to children, and when an emergency occurs, time may be very vital in saving a tooth. It's wise to have established a patient/doctor relationship between your child and a Pediatric Dentist before an emergency occurs.
At the Pediatric Dentist's Office:
While the primary patient in a Pediatric Dentist's office is children, parents must be comfortable there, too. The office should be designed and decorated with children in mind to make them comfortable and at ease with size appropriate furniture, toys, books and games. However, the parents also should be comfortable with the doctor and feel at ease to ask questions. The parent's comfort and confidence level with the Pediatric Dentist will be felt by the child. If the parent is comfortable, the child typically faces the visit more comfortably.
by: Darla Scheidt
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