Preventing Cavities With Dental Sealant Placement
Cavities are common in childhood, but they don’t have to be! With preventive dentistry, we can help lower the risk of tooth decay in little smiles. With the placement of dental sealants, your Dallas, TX, pediatric dentist can provide treatment to help kids avoid the onset of tooth decay in the hard-to-reach portions of their smiles, so they enjoy good oral health and comfortable smiles for years to come.
The Causes and Warning Signs of Childhood Cavities
What causes a cavity to form in your child’s smile? This could be due to factors like poor brushing and flossing habits, combined with a diet high in sugar and starch. These factors can create plaque and tartar buildup, which weakens and erodes the outer ensile to cause tooth decay to form. Other factors could include injury to a tooth or even teeth grinding. When cavities form, kids may eventually develop tooth sensitivity when they eat or drink or may report a toothache that grows worse with time. When a child complains about a toothache, bring them in for an exam. In fact, attending routine checkup and cleaning visits every six months could allow us to catch decay in the early stages even before your little one experiences discomfort.
The Dental Sealant Placement Process
When a cavity forms, we can offer relief with a durable and metal-free dental filling. But we also want to help kids avoid the onset of a cavity completely. With dental sealants, we can significantly lower the risk of cavities. We know that reaching the molars when brushing and flossing is hard for kids, which means food and drink particles can remain there for bacteria to consume, which creates buildup that erodes enamel.
But with dental sealants, our team will apply a special acrylic coating to the teeth. The application takes seconds and kids just need to avoid food and drink for about a half hour as it cures. The layer will stay in place for years to come, as many as ten in some cases. This cuts down on the risk of cavities for years to come. If needed, we can re-apply in future appointments, and the layer simply wears away with time.
If you have any questions about how we help prevent cavities in childhood with our dental sealants, or if you would like to schedule a checkup and cleaning visit for your little one, then contact our office today to get started.
PDC Kids Want to Help Prevent the Onset of Childhood Tooth Decay
We want to help kids enjoy good oral health and avoid toothaches and infection. To find out more about safeguarding little smiles against tooth decay, call Pediatric Dental Care at Casa Linda in Dallas, TX, today at (214) 321-4880.
filed under: Preventive Treatments