It's Important to Take Care of Your Child's Baby Teeth

Why Baby Teeth Matter So Much?

Many parents often wonder at how quickly the first set of their children’s teeth seem to come and disappear. No sooner do the primary 20 teeth of the baby grow in, they begin to pop out. For this reason, parents usually resist having their baby teeth - which are just going to fall out - go through any major dental work. These baby teeth, however, are very important for the dental development of your child as they hold the spots for the larger, permanent teeth that are going to come in. If you want to take care of your baby’s smile as an adult, it starts when he or she is young with baby teeth.

When and How do Babies’ Teeth Develop?

When babies are born, their 20 primary teeth are always present in the jaws and usually start to appear when they are between six months and a year. These first appearing teeth are normally positioned at the top and bottom front of the mouth. Though every child is different, most children will have a complete set of 20 primary teeth up until they are 3. In order to function properly, remain pain-free, and help guide their permanent, adult replacements into position, they need to remain healthy. Once the adult tooth is ready to emerge, the primary baby teeth are pushed out.

What Can You Do If your Baby Has Tooth Decay?

A tooth that’s not decayed seriously may just need filling to save it, but for a baby decayed tooth, root canal treatment may be the recommended option. The pulpotomy root canal procedure is generally used to make your child feel better. This type of root canal procedure is not only less invasive but also less expensive compared to the adult root canal treatment. It includes the removal of a part of diseased aspect of the pulp tissue from within the tooth and sealing of tooth afterward to keep it from reinfection. There may also be a need to cap the baby tooth after the root canal treatment is performed, with stainless steel or natural looking white crowns. This rehabilitation will permit the baby tooth to function normally before it is taken place of by a permanent one. For children going through root canal procedure, the treatment isn’t fearful at all and the child is made to feel comfortable with proper anti-anxiety medication, local anesthesia technique, and conscious sedation. This treatment is also good for a tooth that is injured in an accident severely and its pulp is exposed.

What Happens When Tooth Extraction is the Only Option?

There’re times when after going through all the valiant attempts of using all the available treatments and technology known today, a baby tooth can’t be saved from the final demise – extraction. When a baby tooth is removed, the neighboring teeth can drift into the empty spot of that tooth, which is prevented by fitting child with a space maintainer, a simple orthodontic device that ensures the permanent tooth would come in properly and there are no orthodontic problems caused by premature loss of a baby tooth.

Please keep one thing in mind that all the procedures and treatments stated here are intended to avoid more severe and costly problems in the future. Caring for your child’s baby teeth can establish the path for good oral hygiene habits which will last for decades to come. If affordability is stopping you from paying serious attention to your baby’s dental care needs, you can join a dental savings plan by DentalPlans.com and get 10%-60% off discounts on most dental services. Compared to traditional dental insurance, there will be no caps or limits with a dental savings plan. Plus, if you find out a DentalPlans.com coupon code, purchasing a dental savings plan for your child’s healthy smile will get the cheapest.