How Do We Stop A Cavity?

Posted June 16, 2026

A cavity is a common issue and one that can easily form in your child’s smile, causing toothaches and increasing the risk of an infection! But we can help, stopping the decay to halt discomfort and keep little smiles free of infection and premature tooth loss. In today’s blog, your team at Pediatric Dental Care at Casa Linda talks about how we stop cavities with fillings and crowns.

Cavities and Toothaches

A cavity means that harmful oral bacteria have bypassed the outer enamel and reached the inner dentin, the sensitive structure that makes up most of the tooth. When this happens, your child’s tooth could begin to feel sensitive when they eat or drink, and a toothache could form that only grows in severity. This could lead to infection and worsening discomfort without treatment! When your little one complains about an aching tooth, see our team right away. Remember, if you bring your child in for routine checkup and clearing visits, we can examine smiles and catch decay in the earliest stages, often before kids experience discomfort.

Causes and Other Symptoms

What causes a cavity to form in your child’s smile? Various factors could weaken the outer enamel that protects the tooth, which then allows bacteria to reach the dentin and let a cavity form. The enamel could be weakened by plaque and tartar buildup, which forms due to factors like poor brushing and flossing habits and a diet high in sugar and starch. Injury or teeth grinding could also be possible!

The Risk of Premature Tooth Loss

Without treatment, cavities increase in severity and lead to infection. At this stage, a pulpotomy may be needed. Without treatment, infection means a tooth could be lost or require extraction to protect surrounding teeth. Which is why even when cavities form in baby teeth, you can’t wait for the tooth to simply fall out on its own, as this could happen months or even years beyond the onset of the cavity. To avoid pain and the risk of infection and premature tooth loss, which is a factor in the onset of dental misalignment, we need to treat your child’s cavity with a filling or a crown!

Dental Fillings

In most cases, we can treat a cavity in only one visit with a dental filling. The restoration is made up of a metal-free composite resin, which is more lifelike in appearance and also bonds with the tooth. This can stay in place for years to come. The placement process involves one sitting. We numb the tooth, remove decay, and apply the filling in several layers. We then sculpt and mold this to ensure a proper balance in the bite as the composite resin cures under a light. The final step is to polish the tooth for a brighter appearance. In one visit, we can stop decay and discomfort, and keep little smiles full and healthy.

Crowns

If we find the cavity is too severe for a filling, then we could offer a crown. The restoration could be made from stainless steel, which is perfect for the side and rear teeth that must endure greater bite forces and pressures. We also have a more natural-looking NuSmile zirconia crown, which we could use for the front-facing teeth. The restoration caps the tooth and provides durable repair for years to come. If the tooth is infected, then we could conduct a pulpotomy to remove the infected tissues and replace them with a special medicated filling. We then typically complete the process by securing a crown for the tooth.

Preventing Tooth Decay

Our team also wants to help kids avoid the onset of cavities too! For example, we can monitor the smile with a checkup every six months, and then offer a cleaning in the same visit to remove the plaque and tartar that weakens and erodes outer enamel. We can offer fluoride and dental sealants in the same visit to help strengthen the smile and lower the risk of cavities. Our team also takes time to talk to kids about proper oral hygiene habits and healthy snacking options, which can help them avoid the onset of a cavity in the months to come.

If you have any questions about how we diagnose and treat tooth decay in little smiles, then contact our team today!

PDC Kids Offers Treatment for Tooth Decay

Our team is ready to stop the discomfort in your child’s tooth with a durable and dependable dental restoration for kids. To find out more about preventing and/or treating a cavity in a child’s smile, then call Pediatric Dental Care at Casa Linda in Dallas, TX, today at (214) 321-4880.