Ideally the best time is as soon as you notice teeth or before their 1st birthday. This is because you want to try and get your children accustomed to the dentist at a young age and habits formed form a young age tend to last a lot longer
When should I bring my children to the see the dentist?
What does the dentist do for the children?
The may way we treat children is by prevention, you will find the dentist asking about your childs sugars and acidic intake as these can harm the teeth and also about their brushing habits. They will give advice to try and improve the child oral and dietary habits so that we don’t have problems in the future
How else does the dentist help?
The main job of a dentist is to educate to try and prevent problems from ever developing. Hence why the apply Fluoride varnish, this has great research showing that it makes teeth stronger and less likely to have problems this is applied from when the child is 3 years old until they are adults. If they child is low risk it is applied 2 x a year, if medium risk 3x and if high risk 4 x a year. This is shown to be one of the most important preventative measures we have. If the dentist detects early problem he may either fissure seal or he may do what is called PRR, which is when they clean the deep fissures and seal them to prevent any future problems.
What happens if my child has a hole in their tooth?
The dentist will usually check for any decay in every visit, usually holes will be cleaned out and filled, sometimes they are left depending on what the dentist finds. Again prevent is better then cure so we would always what to avoid this situation arising
What if my child need a tooth taken out?
Teeth are taken out for a number of reasons and usually if they child is complainant it is very straightforward. If they child cannot tolerate this procedure a referral can be sent but again in todays current climate it can be a very long wait!
What about braces?
The dentist will constantly assess your child at every visit for orthodontic needs. The usual age for referral is 12 years of age or when they have lost all of their primary teeth or unless the dentist notices a potential need for early intervention. Unfortunately this is becoming more and more restricted and many children as being denied due to lack if government funding and every changing qualifying criteria’s . Some parents are opting for private ortho, you can ask your dentist about this.