It can break your heart to see your child in pain. If they complain about an ache in one of their teeth, it is important to visit the dentist as soon as possible. This symptom typically implies a bacterial treatment that lies inside the pulp of the tooth. That is why we offer emergency visits outside of standard checkups to resolve a child’s pain and help them preserve their smiles. At this age, we can perform a procedure called a pulpotomy that preserves the healthy portion of your child’s pulp. While traditional root canal therapy removes the entirety of the pulp structure, your child’s tooth will continue to live after treating their bacterial infection.

At your Shirley, NY, pediatric dentist and orthodontist, we help our little patients preserve their developing smiles. This is why we do not typically recommend removing their baby teeth when they have symptoms of decay or infection. Because their jaws are still growing, maintaining their total bite is crucial to developing their healthy oral structures. After treating the immediate concern, we can review what behaviors may have contributed to the infection and provide advice on preventive strategies to lower the risk of future oral harm.

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When your child has a toothache, don’t ignore this pain in your smile. Instead, talk to our team and schedule a consultation. Your little one may have a cavity that needs treatment before the tooth becomes infected or abscessed! In today’s blog, your Shirley, NY, pediatric dentist and orthodontist looks at the warning signs of a cavity and talks about our preventive treatment options.

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By teaching your child the importance of oral hygiene, they can practice their brushing and flossing skills to maintain a healthy smile. To complement these practices, you should schedule regular dental checkups to receive professional cleanings and an examination of their daily efforts. Because kids are still mastering their at-home care, these routine visits help prevent damage from oral plaque and detect cavities and other harms shortly after they appear. This means that a six-month schedule helps us repair decaying teeth before cavities have a chance to get out of hand. Early detection can lead to a more conservative treatment such as a dental filling over a more involved procedure with a dental crown.

At your Shirley, NY, orthodontist and pediatric dentist, we take a preventive attitude toward helping children care for their smiles. This means removing plaque and tartar regularly to protect the integrity of their smile’s enamel. By restoring teeth when we discover signs of decay, we help them maintain the alignment of their bite to aid the proper development of their jaw.

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Learning habits to best protect your smile begins in early childhood. This is because kids, just like their parents, are susceptible to the tooth-eroding effects of oral plaque. By scheduling your child’s first dental appointments, you provide the opportunity for them to learn the importance of brushing and flossing from a professional. These visits allow us to see that their teeth are growing in on schedule and in the proper position. By examining the results of their at-home care, we create teachable moments when highlighting areas that may need a little more attention.

At your Shirley, NY, pediatric dentist and orthodontist, we encourage you to bring your little one in at least twice per year to receive preventative care. At this critical time in their development, protecting their teeth from cavities and gum disease helps build strong smiles that last the rest of their lives. You can set a positive example by scheduling your appointments with us as well as we serve all members of the Shirley, NY community. By taking time to learn the importance of early childhood dental visits, you can give your young one the care they deserve!

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Every parent hates to see their child in pain. When your son or daughter wakes up with a constant toothache, we can help you provide the relief they need. By scheduling an emergency appointment, we can inspect their tooth to determine if an infection is present. When this is the case, we can perform an alternative to root canal therapy called a pulpotomy. Unlike the traditional procedure, this treatment leaves the healthy portions of your child’s pulp and nerve while removing their bacterial infection.

At your Shirley, NY pediatric dentist and orthodontist, we offer emergency services to treat your child’s dental needs outside of routine checkups. While their preventive care is critical to maintaining a healthy mouth, when more serious problems take hold, they require an immediate response. By removing their tooth infection, we can stop your child’s inflammatory response that pushes against their sensitive nerves to cause painful aches. By learning about the benefits of endodontic treatment, you can see how we can be of use in your time of need!

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By teaching your children the importance of oral hygiene, they can begin to enjoy a healthy smile that lasts a lifetime. While brushing and flossing each day is critical to maintaining the strength of their teeth, it is still capable for children to experience cavities. By taking your son or daughter to semiannual checkups, you provide an opportunity to protect them against decay and detect it early when it does occur. This can minimize the work needed to remove a cavity and provide the strength of a dental filling. Protecting a baby’s tooth until it is time to fall out naturally is vital to ensuring your child’s bite stays in alignment and their jaw grows into its proper shape.

At your Shirley, NY, pediatric dentist and orthodontist, we are pleased to serve every member of your family. This includes paying special attention to your little ones as they begin their smile care journeys! While we love to see the results of their daily hygiene routine, we understand the difficulty they can have in fully reaching their back molars. This is why we perform regular examinations to catch decay and help prevent it from spreading or damaging their smiles worse.

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Just like you do, your little one needs to see the dentist from time to time for a routine pediatric cleaning and examination in the office. For most children, these visits need to happen every six months at the very latest, and some smiles need an accelerated schedule due to certain genetic factors. Talk to your pediatric oral health provider about the specific dental needs of your child, and then stick to that schedule!

While we understand the struggles of time management as a parent, our dental office in Shirley, NY also knows how beneficial pediatric oral health maintenance can be for their young smiles. At this age, their mouths are developing rapidly, so be sure that you stay close to your dentist so that they can grow up with a happy and healthy smile. Help your child to learn positive oral health maintenance techniques such as brushing and flossing with routine preventive care from a professional. Their cleanings and examinations also help them to know the importance of prevention, so talk with our team and schedule their next appointment for a dental checkup! (more…)

The goal of children’s dentistry is to help your son or daughter develop a healthy smile as they grow into adolescence. By teaching them the skills to take care of their smile at home, we hope to prevent decay from damaging their teeth. But even with the best intentions, your child can develop a cavity from time to time. When decay grows too large to repair with a simple filling, we could place a dental crown to cap the tooth and restore its bite.  By resealing their injury, we prevent infection from taking hold and help your little one maintain their alignment.

At your Shirley, NY pediatric dentist and orthodontist, we love putting smiles on little faces. When you bring your child to receive a more involved procedure like capping their tooth, we take special care to ensure their comfort and help them feel secure. By returning their bite, we can maintain the proper growth of their jaw and position of all teeth until it is time for the baby tooth to naturally fall out.

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