As my daughter is terrified of the dentist, which has lead to some ongoing tooth problems, I’m welcoming a guest post from Dr. Glafcos Tombolis, who runs Putney dentist Ethicare. Here he addresses some common parental concerns :
Q: When should a child first visit the dentist? How regularly should they visit?
Glafcos Tombolis (GT): I would say that it’s a good idea to bring a child into the dentist between the age of two and two-and-a-half. Bringing them at this age is excellent experience for them as it gets the child used to the dentist’s environment and makes it seem less daunting in future. If there is any problem at all with a child’s teeth before this then parents are of course welcome to bring their child in for a check-up. We’ll try to help them whenever we can and can always refer them to hospital if appropriate. At Ethicare, check-ups are free for all children under the age of five.
GT: On rare occasions baby teeth are present from birth. Normally however, baby teeth start coming through between the age of four months and six months. There are of course variations – one child can find their teeth comes through six months earlier or later than another child of the same age. Missing teeth are rare; if we are concerned about the slow emergence of a tooth we can take X-rays to check the location and development of the tooth. This advice also applies to the development of permanent teeth.
Q: Is there anything parents can do before a child visits the dentist to prepare them?
GT: There are lots of excellent children’s books available such as pop-up picture books describing what a dentist’s practice looks like and what goes on there. These are super for giving kids an idea of what to expect and, of course, parents should speak to their children to fill in any gaps.
Q: In your experience are children generally nervous during their first few visits to the dentist?
Generally, and not surprisingly, children are more unpredictable patients than adults. However, they do share this trait with grown-ups – if they experience pain or discomfort in their mouth prior to a visit to the dentist they are more likely to be nervous about visiting the dentist. If they’ve been prepared well by their parents, they should be less nervous. We try to make a child’s visit to the dentist as fun and as informal as possible – it’s all about taking the fear out of the process.
Q: Do parents normally stay in the room with a young child during a visit to the dentist?
It varies. Some very young children find it extremely reassuring to have a parent present. However, and this might seem a little surprising, some kids can respond negatively – for instance reaching out for their parents while being examined. Deciding whether to accompany a child into the dentist’s room is a judgement call by the parents – it’s important to do what’s best for the child and parents know this best of all.
Q: Do you ever use nitrous oxide to help nervous kids?
Yes; laughing gas is an option that we reserve for all very nervous patients.
Q: A lot of children receive ‘fissure sealant’ treatment. When is this beneficial?
If a patient has one area of decay on their teeth then they should be offered fissure sealant on their other teeth. If there is no decay present then there is no evidence of vulnerability to decay so fissure sealant might well not be beneficial.
Q: How important is a paediatric dentist?
I would say that a paediatric dentist – a dentist who specialises in children’s dentistry - is worth their weight in gold for any practice. We are lucky to have Mina as our paediatric specialist here at Ethicare – she is appreciated by staff and patients.
Early dental experiences can often determine a child’s outlook on dentistry for life. That first visit should be a relaxed and happy one.
We don’t want to put children off visiting the dentist for the rest of their lives!
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