As your family’s pediatric dentist, we offer several dental services to care for every element of your child’s dental health. In addition to providing regular dental cleanings and check-ups, we offer cutting-edge dental care solutions in our fun, kid-friendly environment to protect your child’s teeth today and for their future.
Trust the Pediatric Dentistry at Silverdale Dental Center
From your child’s first baby tooth to their final permanent molar, we use preventive, restorative, and everyday dental care solutions to keep everyone in your family smiling brightly.
X-Rays
Radiographs (x-rays) are vital to ensure a complete, comprehensive dental examination for your child. We use x-rays to:
- Detect cavities
- Evaluate the development and eruption of teeth
- Evaluate teeth and the supporting bone following trauma
- Plan for orthodontic treatment
- Detect disease of the bone
Without the use of x-rays, many dental conditions are invisible—until they become a more serious problem.
The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry recommends children receive dental x-rays every 6–12 months depending on their risk for cavities. As your child’s permanent teeth begin to erupt, a larger, panoramic x-ray is recommended to evaluate all existing and developing teeth, bone, and other orofacial structures.
Our pediatric dentist takes every precaution possible to minimize radiation exposure for patients and employees. Silverdale Dental Center is proud to offer digital radiographs, which lower the radiation exposure for your child when compared to conventional radiographs. This, coupled with the use of a lead apron and collar, exposes your child to minimal radiation.
Pulpal Therapy
Baby teeth may be small, but the nerve and blood vessels (or “dental pulp”) inside them are much larger in proportion than in adult teeth. Cavities in baby teeth can progress quickly toward the pulp, causing pulpal inflammation in the area. Sometimes, this can cause some discomfort in that tooth. Other times, your child will have no symptoms.
Our pulpal therapy treatments remove the infected pulpal tissue and place an inert material inside the tooth that allows the tooth to remain stable in the mouth. These procedures are often called a “baby root canal”, “indirect pulp cap”, “pulpotomy”, or “pulpectomy”.
- Pulpectomy | A pulpectomy is the removal of all pulpal tissue from the crown and root of the tooth. The space is then disinfected and a restorable material is placed to allow normal eruption of the permanent tooth underneath.
- Pulpotomy | A pulpotomy removes the affected portion of the pulp and places an agent to calm the remaining nerve and remove any residual bacteria. The tooth is then restored with a full-coverage, stainless steel crown to seal it from further injury.
- Indirect Pulp Cap | An indirect pulp cap is the removal of nearly all of the cavity, leaving just a small portion over the nerve of the tooth. Medicine is applied that adds a layer of protection to decrease sensitivity and prevent further growth of the bacteria. Finally, the tooth is filled with a restoration to help prevent a reinvasion of bacteria.
Silver Diamine Fluoride
Silver diamine fluoride (SDF) is a non-invasive, FDA-approved treatment option for some cavities. Not all teeth are candidates for this material. However, when used correctly, it can both stop active decay and prevent future decay in the treated tooth.
Since coming on the market, it has been an incredible aid in helping address decay in children and adults. Dental cavities are the most common chronic childhood disease, and we are excited to offer an alternative to the traditional “drill and fill” approach to managing dental cavities.
Benefits of SDF:
- Quick and painless application
- Helps relieve sensitivity
- Arrests 80% of dental decay
- Promotes remineralization of natural tooth structure
SDF does have some drawbacks, including staining any decayed portion of the tooth. This also does not work as well on teeth with deep cavities; they will still need a proper restoration. However, it is an effective non-invasive solution in some cases.
Restorations
When our pediatric dentist detects a cavity during your child’s exam, they will recommend a means to restore the tooth in both form and function. Depending on the cavity’s size, the area may be numbed to ensure your child is comfortable throughout the procedure.
Often a “whale tail,” “mermaid tail,” or non-latex rubber isolating unit, is placed to protect your child from any debris during the cavity removal. Once the cavity is removed, the tooth will be restored using one of the following methods:
- Dental fillings
- Dental crowns
- Space maintainers
If your child’s cavity is substantial, our pediatric dentist may recommend a crown, or “cap,” to protect their teeth. Baby teeth are small, and often a cavity is large enough that the remaining tooth structure is insufficient to hold a filling. These caps are silver on the back teeth and white on the front teeth.
Dental Extractions
While we make every attempt to save your child’s teeth, there are times when the removal of a tooth is recommended. Teeth affected by large cavities that would prohibit the placement of a filling or crown, have a large infection, or have suffered trauma that makes them unsafe to remain in the mouth are all possible candidates for a necessary extraction.
Extractions are recommended to reduce your child’s discomfort or prevent further infection. Since baby teeth are a placeholder for permanent teeth we often place an appliance to save space for the developing tooth to erupt.
Space Maintainers
If your little one loses a baby tooth to extraction, trauma, or excessive decay, our dentist may recommend a space maintainer to keep the space open until his or her permanent tooth comes through the gums.
Without it, your child could experience various complications, including:
- Increased risk of dental crowding
- Impacted teeth
- Crooked or overlapping teeth
- Misaligned bite
- The need for orthodontic treatment later on
These devices are typically constructed from metal and are only worn until the permanent tooth erupts. They can be removed during your child’s routine dental appointments when they are no longer needed and should be brushed and cleaned regularly to prevent infection and damage to either your child’s smile or the device itself.
Lip Tie and/or Tongue Tie
When your child was born, they may have developed a lip or tongue tie that limits the range of motion in the mouth due to stiff, excess, or malformed tissues. A tongue tie may cause your child to have difficulty speaking, sucking, swallowing, or sticking the tongue out. With a lip tie, their top lip may not be able to curl out or move freely.
Babies with a lip tie and/or tongue tie may find it harder to nurse successfully due to an inability to latch effectively and a shorter range of motion with their tongue. While some infants don’t struggle at all to breastfeed, others may exhibit difficulties such as:
- Refusals to feed
- Long periods of feeding
- Frequent, ongoing cluster feeding
- Heart-shaped tongue
- Excessive clicking noises while sucking
- Inability to move the tongue side to side
- Pain for the mother when nursing
- Dribbling milk
Without adequate lip or tongue movement, your little one may find eating, drinking, speaking, or taking good care of their teeth a challenge. This can lead to additional health problems due to an inability to gain weight and perform regular functions.
Infants and children with significant lip and/or tongue ties may need a treatment known as a frenectomy to free the lip and/or tongue and promote healthy motion. This procedure is simple, safe, and can be performed with or without anesthetic depending on the severity and the child’s age. After it’s complete, your child should heal quickly and easily with proper care.
Myofunctional Therapy
Children whose bones, muscles, and teeth have functional, developmental,l or structural irregularities may have one of many orofacial myofunctional disorders. Many children naturally outgrow the condition, but many others require treatment to encourage healthier, more uniform development.
These conditions can make it more difficult for your child to breathe, speak, bite, swallow or sleep. Your child may be at a higher risk for a myofunctional disorder if they:
- Has lip or tongue tie
- Bottle-fed for an extended period
- Nasal obstructions or allergies
- Sucked his or her thumb
- Delayed introduction to solid foods
Not all children who have had trouble with feeding or thumb-sucking develop myofunctional irregularities. Those that do, however, may be candidates for myofunctional therapy.
What Is Myofunctional Therapy?
Myofunctional therapy involves training and strengthening the face, mouth, and throat to function properly and maintain a healthy alignment. It usually involves various exercises or devices to activate and encourage cooperative muscular patterns.
These therapies, including those with the following devices, work to improve the tone and structure of your child’s face, addressing the underlying causes of any behavioral or anatomical dysfunction:
- Myo Munchee | The Myo Munchee is a comfortable, non-toxic silicone orthotic device that encourages healthy, even chewing. Your child can build up lower facial muscle tone by chewing the device for ten minutes per day, helping to support clearer speech patterns, a healthy jaw, easier breathing, improved facial structure, and more.
- Myobrace | The Myobrace is a preventive treatment designed to address the cause of various orthodontic issues, including crooked and crowded teeth, abnormal jaw development, and bite problems. This device is not an orthodontic aligner. Rather, it is worn to assist in the correct development of dental and facial alignment, helping permanent teeth to grow into their proper place.
Myofunctional therapy helps your child to reach his or her full genetic potential. Call our practice to schedule a free consultation to discuss these therapies with your child’s dentist.
Keep Your Child’s Smile Bright With Silverdale Dental Center | Call Today!
To talk about the wide range of pediatric dental services we offer, give us a call or schedule an appointment to get started.
