Pediatric Dentistry Department

Pediatric dentists provide comprehensive oral health care that includes the following:

• Infant oral health exams, which include risk assessment for caries in mother and child
• Preventive dental care including cleaning and fluoride treatments, as well as nutrition and diet recommendations
• Habit counseling (for example, pacifier use and thumb sucking)
• Early assessment and treatment for straightening teeth and correcting an improper bite (orthodontics)
• Repair of tooth cavities or defects
• Diagnosis of oral conditions associated with diseases such as diabetes, congenital heart defect, asthma, hay fever, and attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder
• Management of gum diseases and conditions including ulcers, short frenulum, mucoceles, and pediatric periodontal disease
• Care for dental injuries (for example, fractured, displaced, or knocked-out teeth)
• Children are not just small adults. They are not always able to be patient and cooperative during a dental exam. Pediatric dentists know how to examine and treat children in ways that make them comfortable. In addition, pediatric dentists use specially designed equipment in offices that are arranged and decorated with children in mind.

A pediatric dentist offers a wide range of treatment options, as well as expertise and training to care for your child’s teeth, gums, and mouth. When your pediatrician suggests that your child receive a dental exam, you can be assured that a pediatric dentist will provide the best possible care.

Pediatric Dentistry

Our clinics, with their friendly atmosphere and kids playing area, are specially designed to suit children of all ages and all personalities. We follow specific oral health programs that offer our children a brighter future with healthy teeth and therefore healthy lifestyle.

What is a pediatric dentist?

Pediatric dentistry is the specialty of dentistry that focuses on the oral health of young people. It prepares the dentists to meet the needs of infants, children and adolescents, including persons with special health care needs.

We, as pediatric dentists, focus on prevention, early detection and treatment of dental diseases, and keep current on the latest advances in dentistry for children. We use different approaches in dealing with childrens behavior, guiding their dental growth and development, and helping them avoid future dental problems

Why do we care about primary teeth?

Unfortunately, caries in children can progress very rapidly in only 6-12 months requiring intervention in a very short time span. Among the potential short-term consequences of untreated dental caries are severe pain, failure to thrive, malocclusion, extractions, and trips to the emergency room.

Longer-term consequences include harmful effects on speech, nutrition, school performance, academic achievements, and self-image, which can affect economic productivity. Other sequences have been reported such as wearing down the stamina of children and defeating their ambitions. The same disease that causes the loss of a tooth can now be considered a matter of life and death if the heart and blood vessels are also being damaged as a result of the disease.

What services do we provide?

1- Preventive dentistry :

.Pit and fissure sealants

One of the caries prevention means that we use is applying pit and fissure sealants to usually permanent and sometimes primary molar teeth. The sealant that we apply is a clear material that is applied to the chewing surfaces (grooves) of the back teeth (premolars and molars), where four out of five cavities in children are found. This sealant acts as a barrier to food, plaque and acid, thus protecting the decay-prone areas of the teeth.

Longer-term consequences include harmful effects on speech, nutrition, school performance, academic achievements, and self-image, which can affect economic productivity. Other sequences have been reported such as wearing down the stamina of children and defeating their ambitions. The same disease that causes the loss of a tooth can now be considered a matter of life and death if the heart and blood vessels are also being damaged as a result of the disease.

Fluoride

Part of our oral health program is applying fluoride gel regularly to primary and permanent teeth. It is just like the fluoride in toothpaste but applied professionally with higher concentrations and usually every 6 months. Fluoride helps because, when teeth are growing, it mixes with tooth enamel, that hard coating on your teeth. That prevents tooth decay or cavities. But fluoride can help even after your teeth are formed. It works with saliva to protect tooth enamel from plaque and sugars. By using fluoride toothpaste, for instance, everyone can enjoy some cavity protection. Fewer cavities mean healthier teeth when you’re an adult and less chance of having to wear false teeth (dentures) when you’re old.

.Interceptive orthodontics

Developing malocclusions, or bad bites can be recognized as early as 2-3 years of age. Often, early steps can be taken to reduce the need for major orthodontic treatment at a later age.

.Oral habits

Thumb sucking is one of the most common habits during childhood. This habit generally stops by the age of 5 years. Some older children will retain the habit which can cause severe dental problems, if all parents attempts fail to stop the habit the dentist may recommend inserting a device in the child’s mouth that prevents sucking. These oral devices can be either fixed or removable.

2- Operative dentistry :

.Stainless steel crowns

Primary molars with extensive decay, malformed enamel, pulpotomy or fracture may require coverage with a stainless steel crown in order to provide a durable restoration until the eruption of the permanent teeth.1q

.Space maintainer

If a primary tooth has to be removed or is lost early due to an abscess or trauma, a space maintainer may be recommended to save the space. If space is not preserved, the other teeth may drift causing crowding and orthodontic problems. If it is a front tooth then you don’t need a space maintainer. However, you can place a Pediatric Partial to replace the teeth for cosmetic reasons. Space maintainers are appliances made of metal or plastic that are custom fit to your child’s mouth. They are not permanent, they are removed when the new tooth erupts or the abutment teeth get loose.

3- Conscious sedation :

Sometimes a child may feel anxious before or during dental treatment. Your child may need more support than a gentle, caring manner to feel comfortable. Nitrous oxide/oxygen (laughing gas) is a safe, effective sedative agent used to calm a child’s fear of the dental visit and enhance effective communication. Additionally, it works well for children whose gag reflex interferes with dental treatment. A fitted mask is placed over the nose and, as the patient breathes normally, uptake occurs through the lungs. At the end of treatment, it is eliminated after a short period of breathing oxygen and has no lingering effects

4- Hospital dentistry:

It is sometimes necessary to complete dental treatment on children using general anesthesia. General anesthesia may be used if your child needs extensive or complicated procedures that will take a long time to complete, or needs several procedures done all at the same time. This procedure will be done in a recommended hospital.

Oral health can have a significant impact on overall health and well-being. Comprehensive health care cannot be achieved unless oral care is included in all health service programs By raising oral health awareness, the prevention, early detection, and management of dental, oral, and craniofacial tissues can become integrated into health care, community-based programs, and social services.