Services Offered in Children Dentistry 

Do you ever wonder why anyone would choose to dedicate an entire specialty of dentistry to children’s dental health? There must be more to children’s oral health that we often take it to be.

Children dentistry service for children is not something that has started today. Over the years, dental experts have always given attention to the oral needs of children. Read in to learn why children’s oral health is important, and the kind of services offered thereof.

Understanding Children’s Dentistry

It is a specialty of dental health set aside to address the oral needs of children. In children dentistry, children right from infancy to teenage years get attended to by children dentists in Ellicott city. Even though their teeth are few and their mouths are small, children have several oral needs that need attention.

One of the reasons why children dentistry is important is because of the growing needs of children. Kids keep growing every day, and the changes are evident throughout their bodies. This means that their mouths too, grow and develop. This presents a whole new set of challenges, as a child progresses from one stage of childhood to another. At one point, a dentist in Ellicott City, MD will be addressing teething problems, and in a couple of years, all that may transition into orthodontic problems.

What Can You Expect in Children Dentistry?

Dental health for children is not significantly different from general dental care for adults. The only difference is in the nature of services since they are designed for a younger audience with smaller mouths. Some of the oral services you will encounter in children dentistry include the following:

• Dental sealants – dental cavities are a major oral problem for kids. Between the ages of 6 and 14, most children have dental cavities in multiple teeth. Dental sealants for kids help fight dental cavities. Ideally, sealants feature a layer of plastic-like coating that is applied to the back teeth. Once the sealant fills the pits of the teeth, dental cavities are hard to form.
• Fluoride treatment – another way to fight dental cavities is by boosting the strength of the enamel of teeth. Fluoride is a natural element that coats the teeth protectively, shielding them from ways penetration of corrosive acids and plaque.
• Deep cleans – they are professional efforts to clean the oral cavities of teeth, getting rid of bacteria, plaque, and tartar.
• Dental Braces for orthodontic treatment – while braces may not fight dental decay, they are great for achieving a pleasing smile in the long haul. Braces are placed over teeth to straighten them. This ensures proper bites and beautiful smiles.
• Space maintainers – still in orthodontics, dentists for kids use space maintainers to save space for new teeth to grow. When a child loses a tooth, it is hard to predict when a new one will grow. This can leave room for the rest of the teeth to start shifting, posing an orthodontic problem. Space maintainers are used for saving space, preventing the shifting of teeth.
• Bruxism treatment – most kids grind their teeth when asleep, which is a condition called bruxism. Even though not all cases of teeth grinding have a significant effect treatment is available for exceptional cases. The use of night gears and mouthguards can help children conquer bruxism, protecting their teeth from premature thinning and hypersensitivity.
• Tongue-tie treatment – this is not a dental problem commonly discussed, even though it significantly affects some kids. Right from birth, your child may have a small and tight Frenum, which limits the movements of the tongue. This tissue can make it hard for your child to speak properly and worse, cause difficulties in breastfeeding. Treatment for tongue-tie is also available in children dentistry.
• Nutritional counseling – if you have kids of your own, then you know it can be a battle getting them to eat right, leave alone healthy. Nutritional counseling will help you get your child to enjoy eating healthy meals and trade-off some of the sweet foods for fruits and vegetables.
• Habit counseling – food is not the only thing children struggle with as they grow up. Eventually, they pick up unhealthy habits that hurt their teeth. Such include biting fingernails, crashing candies and ice cubes, thumb sucking, to mention a few. If you give a children dentist near you a chance, they just might talk your child sucking the bad habits in exchange for better ones.