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Child Dentistry
 
 
   

The time of the first visit of the child to the dentist

Usually it happens around  2 years of age but it would be best to bring them in as soon as you think they are old enough to sit in a dentist's chair without being scared enough to cry and scream. The parent Should accompany the child into the operatory. In a majority of cases, children do perfectly well with parents in the operatory.  It is the minority of cases that are the most difficult, and the ones in which the parents are best asked to leave for the waiting room.  

The correct  age for the child to start brushing

The moment the first tooth erupts in the oral cavity, brushing should be started. Before that in infants , the gum pads should be cleaned with a soft piece of cloth by the parents.

Parents concerned about their child's oral health may do some of the brushing for them, but it is always best not to make it an unpleasant experience. The easiest way to indoctrinate children in brushing is to let them watch you do it on a regular basis and then encourage them to imitate you when they show an interest. 

Technique is not important at an early age. The point is to get them to start to handle the toothbrush at an early age, and to get them used to having one in their mouth. 

The importance of Milk Teeth

Baby teeth are just as important as adult teeth, and must be just as well protected from disease and made to stay in the oral cavity.  

  1. Children need their teeth as much as we do to chew and smile.  If the teeth are lost early, the child will suffer pain and an inability to eat properly will lead to poor nutrition.  

  2. Though we as adults do not give it importance, but children do have a social life and feel embarrassed to have missing teeth. This might lead to psychological problems.

  3. The baby teeth are essential for holding the spaces open so that the adult teeth can come into the correct position when they are finally developed.

The normal pattern of eruption of milk teeth

The child has 20 milk teeth. Over a period of time these 20 teeth will be replaced by 20 permanent teeth (incisors, canines and pre molars) and 12 more teeth ( molars ) to have a total of 32 permanent teeth.

The first teeth begin to erupt at about age 6 months and continue until about age 24 months at which time all 20 of the baby teeth are in place. 

In general, the teeth erupt from the front to the back, and the lowers come in about 2 to 6 months before the corresponding upper teeth. The lower incisors are the first teeth to erupt followed by upper front teeth.

If your child is late, don't worry.  They may finish as much as a year behind schedule. 

If your child is missing one or more baby teeth, it does not necessarily mean that she will be missing the corresponding adult teeth. If some of the baby teeth are discolored or misshapen, it does not usually indicate that there will be a problem with the adult teeth.

The normal pattern of eruption of child’s adult teeth

The first adult tooth erupts even before the child has lost the first baby tooth, at about age 6.  They are the first adult molars and they erupt behind the existing baby teeth. At about the same time the lower baby central incisors will loosen and fall out to allow the adult central incisors to erupt. All the baby teeth should be gone, or the remaining ones lost by age 12. The adult teeth that are forming under them will continue to erupt through age 17 or 18 when the wisdom teeth finally are supposed to erupt.

 
   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

     
   

 

 

In some cases, a baby tooth may remain in place even though the adult tooth is erupting beside it.  In this case, the baby tooth MUST come out one way or another or it will interfere with the positioning of the adult tooth.  If the child cannot or will not remove it herself by wiggling it, then take the help of your dentist for an extraction. 

The correct time for child to wear braces

Except the skeletal deformities, most of the malocclusions in children can be prevented by interceptive orthodontics to a large extent. So it becomes imperative to visit your dentist the moment permanent teeth start to erupt and milk teeth start to fall. It is essential that all children be examined for orthodontic deformities by about the age of 7 when the most common skeletal deformities can most easily be treated. Many of these problems are not apparent to the parents, and require a dental exam to identify them. If need be, orthodontics can be started as early as 8-9 years.  Left untreated, these deformities cause the child lots of functional and esthetic problems in the years ahead. 

One stage of development needs special comment because so many parents mistake it for an orthodontic problem.  It's called the "ugly duckling" stage when there is a space between the top central incisors.  This is the norm between ages 7 through 12 years of age, and usually is not connected with a permanent space between the teeth.

Is it normal for children to grind their teeth at night?

It IS normal for children under the age of about 13 to grind their teeth at night.  It appears to serve two purposes.  

  1. Grinding places pressure on the roots of the baby teeth over the developing adult teeth which stimulates resorption (natural destruction) of the roots of the baby teeth.  This resorption is ultimately responsible for the shedding of the baby teeth when the adult teeth are ready to erupt.  

  2. Grinding also helps the adult teeth to erupt into their most stable positions in the dental arches.

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