The permanent teeth in children are starting to develop at age 3. If the child is receiving fluoride drops and is drinking fluoridated water, they may get fluorosis on the permanent teeth due to excess fluoride.
Dental Fluorosis isn't a disease and doesn't affect the health of your teeth. It is a cosmetic developmental defect of enamel that can occur when a higher than optimal amount of fluoride is ingested while the permanent teeth are developing, before they have erupted.
There are different types of fluorosis, and they have different symptoms and side effects.
Mild: The most widespread form of fluorosis and the least detectable. They look like small white spots on the teeth. They can either be easily noticeable or can be so faint that only a pediatric dentist near me is able to detect them.
Moderate: In some cases, the teeth develop yellowish or brown stains, giving the teeth a dull or even translucent appearance.
Severe: The rarest and most extreme type of fluorosis not only has severe staining, but also causes several pits or small holes in the surface of the teeth. Teeth with severe fluorosis are usually structurally weak and can even be poorly formed.
In mild cases of fluorosis, no treatment is required. However, in more severe cases there are several fluorosis treatment options aimed at improving the appearance of affected teeth.
Regulars visits to a children dentist can help you to prevent dental fluorosis in your kids.
Baby teeth are important for maintaining the structure of your child’s jaw and ensuring the adult teeth emerge in the right place. When baby molars teeth that are deeply decayed a pulpotomy is necessary to be done. A pulpotomy is the most commonly needed nerve treatment for a baby tooth performed in a kid dental office. Even children as young as 2 years old could need it.
This treatment is necessary when a cavity in a primary tooth is deep enough to have affected part of the nerve. Pulpotomy procedures are like root canal but not quite the same. A root canal is a more complex procedure performed on a permanent tooth. The pulpotomy consists in the removal of a portion of the pulp, including the diseased aspect, with the intent of maintaining the vitality of the remaining pulpal tissue.
If infected pulp is untreated, an abscess in a tooth can occur. An abscessed tooth can’t be saved and must be extracted. In addition, a pulpotomy will ensure any infection does not spread to neighboring teeth or surrounding gums. Symptoms may include pain on biting, swelling, and a bump on your gum.
It’s important to brush and floss your child’s teeth regularly, visit the pediatric dentist in West Palm Beach every 6 month for regular cleaning and check-up, and have cavities filled as soon as they arise so that a pulpotomy does not become necessary.
Baby teeth are important to the development of the teeth, jaw bones and muscles and help to guide permanent teeth into position when the baby teeth are lost. If a space is not maintained, then teeth can shift into the open space and orthodontic treatment may be required.
A space maintainer is a dental device used in pediatric dentistry to preserve tooth-space for a permanent tooth when a child prematurely loses a primary or baby tooth due to trauma, decay, or slow eruption. Instead of placing artificial teeth over a tooth-gap, the space is kept open with an acrylic or metal material.
A space maintainer is an appliance that is custom-made by a dentist or orthodontist in acrylic or metal material. It can be either removable or cemented in a child's mouth. Its purpose is to keep the space open to allow the permanent tooth to erupt and come into place.
Not every child who loses a baby tooth early or to dental decay requires a space maintainer; however, a professional consultation with your Pediatric Dentist near me or orthodontist should be conducted to determine if using a space maintainer is needed.
There are two types of space maintainers for children, removable and fixed. Removable means the device is removable. Fixed maintainers are cemented in place until removed by your dentist. There are, also, bilateral and unilateral maintainers. Bilateral maintainers preserve spaces on both sides of the mouth; and unilateral maintainers preserve a space on just one side of the mouth.
The child should be seen by the kid dentist or orthodontist on a regular basis to monitor the progress of treatment with the space maintainer and continue to receive a regular six-month professional cleaning appointment with your dental professional.
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