Children's Dentistry
Good oral hygiene habits, learned at an early age, lead to a healthy mouth and a stunning smile for a lifetime.
At Coogee Plaza Dental Clinic, we are here to help your little ones to look after those precious teeth throughout their lives. We make a trip to the dentist fun by going for a ride in the chair, practicing opening wide like a tiger and introducing instructional toys to make them feel at ease before any treatment.
We work with Paediatric dentists and orthodontists to ensure all your child’s dental needs are looked after at all stages of their development.
Children’s dental services include routine dental examinations to identify and prevent any problems, placing sealants for cavity prevention, fillings where there is decay and tooth extractions where spacing is too tight or for badly decayed/infected teeth.
How is children’s dental treatment needs different to adults?
Growing children need a little bit of extra attention to keep their teeth in good condition.
If your child plays a contact sport, a professionally made mouth guard is a must to protect against dental trauma.
Mouth guards are soft plastic devices that comfortably fit the shape of your child’s mouth and protect teeth, lips, cheeks and gums from injury during sport.
As with adults, regular trips to the dentist are important to ensure teeth are developing properly. Regular brushing is critical, as is control of little ones’ diets.
One of the most important preventative treatments that may be needed in children are fissure sealants (small image of fissure sealants required). These are a protective coating, often plastic, that fills grooves in a tooth’s biting surface, preventing bacteria from breeding there and causing decay.
How important is diet in children’s dental care?
Diet is very important in your child’s dental health. If they eat lot of carbohydrates, sugar and starches, they can be at higher risk of tooth decay.
From 6 months of age, your little one should be regularly encouraged to drink water, as they are less likely to develop tooth decay with only water between meals. We recommend limiting unhealthy or sugary foods in your little one’s diet, or at least restricting them to meal times.
What does a child’s appointment look like?
Children’s appointments last between 15 and 30 minutes. In this time, we examine little teeth, look at the jaw structure, bite and entire mouth development to make sure everything is as it should be. We also clean and polish little teeth and treat them with fluoride to prevent decay.
Children may need x-rays to show how baby and adult teeth are coming through; show any extra or missing teeth, infections in teeth and prepping for braces where needed.
If your little one has braces or orthodontic treatments, oral hygiene is even more important. In this case we recommend routine appointments ever 3-4 months. This will help prevent damage to teeth and gums under braces. If your child doesn’t have braces, we recommend dental appointments twice a year to ensure strong, healthy teeth and gums.
Our caring team will help your child enjoy their visit, while learning key skills in oral health.
Contact our friendly staff to make your appointment today.
Children’s Dentistry FAQs
When should I start cleaning my baby’s teeth?
As soon as little teeth start coming through, you should introduce cleaning. Make sure you use a small, soft toothbrush to help your baby get used to teeth cleaning and make it part of their morning and night time routine. The last thing to touch little one’s teeth before they go to bed at night is a fluoride toothpaste.
Only use a flat smear of at least 1000ppm fluoride toothpaste on their brush until the age of 3. After 3 you should use a pea sized drop of paste on their brush. As they get older, encourage them to brush on their own, but continue to supervise them until they reach 7 years of age. Always keep toothpaste out of reach of young children. Also remember, a manual toothbrush used well is just as effective as an electric toothbrush.
Why is fluoride recommended for children’s teeth?
Fluoride is present in some water supplies and has been shown to strengthen tooth enamel and prevent decay. Fluoride has now been added to all water supplies and is also added to toothpastes and other oral health products. Using fluoride toothpaste strengthens little teeth and reduces the risk of dental problems.
What age should children start dental check ups?
In short, as soon as they get their first teeth, definitely by their first birthday. It’s very important that they become familiar and comfortable with the environment (sounds, smells & sights) of a dental practice. You are welcome to bring them with you to your appointments to help them feel comfortable when they do have their very own appointments.
How many teeth do children have?
Most children will usually have 20 milk or baby teeth by the age of 3. Adults usually have 32 teeth, including wisdom teeth.
What age should my baby start teething?
Occasionally teeth can be present at birth, but usually little ones’ start teething around 6 months of age. The first teeth to come out are usually the lower front teeth. This can vary largely from child to child.
When do children get their adult teeth?
Children’s teeth development can vary, however generally permanent teeth start coming through around 6 years of age. Your little one should have all their adult teeth by 12 – 14 years of age. This doesn’t include wisdom teeth, which normally come through somewhere between 17 to 21 years of age.
Do children need dental x-rays?
Some children are in a high-risk category for decay. This may be due to teeth being crowded or they were significantly delayed in coming through. This will mean that a dental x-ray may be the best action for your child.
The dose of radiation received in these x-rays is minimal, and while we still minimise the number of x-rays, yearly x-rays to check spacing and for high caries risk children are recommended.
Are dummies and thumb sucking bad for teeth?
Dummy or thumb sucking habits are common in children under 12 months of age, and up to 6 years of age in some cases. They can cause dental complications including narrowing of the upper jaw, protruding upper front teeth or anterior open bite or a gap between upper and lower front teeth causing bite difficulties and speech problems due to lisping.
Breaking this habit can be difficult in older children, but there are aids such as orthodontic thumb guards that can help to break a bad habit.
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Contact us today to arrange dental hygiene appointment in Coogee Plaza Dental.
Same-day visits are available.