Female portrait of charming child of three years with a beautiful smile, cheerful shot on isolated pink.

Regular dental checkups are vital to ensuring the health of your child’s smile. Not only do we clean their teeth at each visit, but a six-month checkup allows us to inspect your child’s teeth for the signs of decay or gum disease. If we detect a cavity, we will suggest removing the decaying material and placing a cavity to restore the outer seal of their tooth. This helps stop the spread of decay to neighboring teeth and aids in proper jaw growth by maintaining the alignment of their bite.

At your Shirley, NY, pediatric dentist and orthodontist, we look forward to serving your family as your child grows into adolesence. Receiving checkups allows us to create a dental record that indicates when flaws appear. Because children are still learning to fully brush and floss each day, tooth decay can take hold of their baby teeth from time to time. We encourage placing a restoration to help them enjoy a healthy smile.

When Cavities Form In A Child’s Smile

By attending routine checkups, we can examine your child’s smile for tooth decay every six months. We recommend immediately treating cavities when they appear to return their smile to health. By forgoing regular visits, the decay risks damaging their tooth until it requires more significant repair with dental crown. Do not wait until they complain of a toothache to visit our office. This could indicate a painful infection that requires root canal therapy. By restoring their tooth, their jaw can continue to grow and align with the rest of their smile.

Recieving A Dental Filling

After detecting a cavity, we will take images using digital X-rays to determine its exact location and size. This helps us determine if a filling is appropriate to restore their tooth after removing decaying material. To ensure their comfort during the procedure, we will apply a local anesthetic that numbs the affected area. If your child feels anxious about treating their cavity, we can discuss dental sedation methods to put them at ease. Using special tools, we remove the decay and place a composite resin material that constitutes the filling. By shading the filling to the color of their natural teeth, we can restore their tooth’s appearance as well.

Cavity Prevention For Kids

At your child’s checkup we can provide additional protection against tooth decay in the form of dental sealants and fluoride treatments. Sealants offer a physical barrier against cavity-causing plaque for hard-to-reach molars. By applying fluoride, we can reminearlize your child’s enamel to help it resist the acidic waste of oral bacteria.

Talk To Your Shirley, NY, Orthodontist, and Pediatric Dentist About Treatment For Your Child’s Tooth Decay

Regular checkups help your child develop healthy oral hygiene habits as they grow. For more information on how we can help treat decay, contact Shirley Orthodontics and Pediatric Dentistry in Shirley, NY, by calling (631) 399-1600.