Pediatric Dentists
What Is a Pediatric Dentist?
Pediatric dentistry is a specialized area of dentistry focused on and dedicated to the oral health of children. This ranges from infancy all the way through your child’s teen years. Our pediatric dentists have vast experience and qualifications to care for the unique needs of a child’s teeth, gums, and mouth throughout all the various stages of childhood, puberty and adolescence.
Children will usually begin to get their baby teeth during the first 6 months to a year of life. The American Dental Association has recommended that your child visit a pediatric dentist once their first tooth erupts or by age 1, whichever happens first. By age 6 or 7 years, your child will begin to lose these baby teeth, which will be replaced by their permanent teeth. Proper dental care is crucial in order to prevent your child from facing oral disease and decay, which can contribute to a lifetime of dental complications.
In addition to the four years of dental school that all dentists attend, children’s dentists have also completed two additional years of residency training. This training has allowed them to work with and become specialists in dentistry for infants, children, teens, and even children with special needs.
The Types Of Treatment Pediatric Dentists Provide
- Infant oral health exams – This includes a risk assessment for caries in both the mother and the child.
- Preventive dental care – We provide dental cleanings and fluoride treatments, in addition to nutrition recommendations.
- Habit counseling – We want to help you correct any bad habits your child may have developed. This includes pacifier use, thumb sucking or an aversion to oral health habits.
- Early orthodontic assessment – We’ll be able to provide advice and recommendations for any future orthodontic treatment your child may need.
- Tooth cavity repair
- Care for dental injuries – This can include chipped, displaced or knocked-out teeth.
Dentistry For Children
We know that children are not just small adults! They have difficulty being patient and cooperative during their dental exams. Luckily, our pediatric dentists are skilled at putting children at ease and making them feel comfortable.
