The Top Seven Dental Health Issues in Children
Maintaining healthy dental health is essential to prevent tooth decay and other oral health issues. Unfortunately, due to poor hygiene practices, children start growing tooth problems early.
Identifying the most common dental problems in children is vital to prevent them Therefore, parents should visit a children’s dentist in Edmond to take preventative measures and reduce the risk of dental issues in the future.
Here, we will discuss a few pediatric dental health problems that are very common in children.
Identify the Poor Dental Health Signs before Visiting a Children's Dentist
Cavities or Tooth Decay
Small children cannot grasp their toothbrushes properly, so they cannot brush and floss their teeth. That is why food particles and plaque stay on teeth, eventually becoming harder to remove through simple oral care. The acid present in plaque slowly damages the enamel and finally causes tooth decay.
Tooth decay or cavities can also occur due to having excessive sugary foods. To prevent such issues, parents must supervise when brushing their teeth until they can do it independently. Regular removal of plaque and food particles helps protect your children's teeth. But if the problem goes out of hand, schedule check-ups with pediatric dentists to prevent decay at an early stage. A tooth filling is a typical cavity removal treatment and dentists start drilling the decayed tissue and then filling the space with hard composite material.
Sensitive Tooth
Research suggests children are more inclined towards craving sugary drinks and foods. But consuming excessive sugar-sweetened foods and beverages causes tooth sensitivity. It eats away the enamel over time and leaves your children's teeth without protection and the teeth become more sensitive to hot and cold temperatures. Certain other factors contribute to making your kid's tooth susceptible to sensitivity. That includes:
Cavities.
Cracked filling.
Bruxism or teeth grinding.
Newly erupted teeth.
Improper orthodontic treatment.
It is ideal for taking your child to dental care clinics for bi-annual check-ups and fixing the issues initially.
Different Types of Dental Emergencies
It is not uncommon for children to face accidental dental injuries while playing. These injuries can result in teeth breaking, chipping and cracking. It is not unusual that your child's teeth can knock out permanently. However, knocked-out teeth are not very concerning if they are primary or baby teeth. But if the bleeding shows no signs of receding, it is best to visit a dentist nearby.
The dentist can evaluate and diagnose the problem immediately and help relieve your kid's pain.
Gum Disease and Gingivitis
Children with poor oral hygiene tend to get gum disease. The symptoms include swollen gums, gum recession, foul odor and pain in the mouth.
Gingivitis is an early stage of gum disease, and you can notice red swollen gum, which is likely to bleed. Help your child take proper oral care to avoid such problems.
Orthodontic Issues
Orthodontic problems are genetic or inherited problems that include teeth crowding, missing teeth, excess between teeth and a few irregularities of the jaw and teeth. Now it has become effortless to treat such misalignments of teeth. Dental surgeons use different modern equipment to treat such significant dental issues.
Thumb Sucking
Babies or toddlers have natural tendencies to put thumbs or fingers into their mouths, which helps them ease their anxiety. But the problem starts if they continue this habit while growing up. Excessive thumb sucking causes tooth misalignment. Then it becomes hard for them to bite and chew food properly, even affecting their speech. Hence, parents must be strict with their kids when they get past the toddler stage.
Common Dental Anxiety
A routine dental check-up may make your child anxious. But combating this phobia at an early stage is essential. Thus, it will help if you visit a children's dentist with good experience in treating anxious kids. Besides caring for their dental health, the doctor will help them ease their tension.
Contact Us
Visit our clinic Laura A. Ballinger, DDS at Edmond, to treat children's dentistry issues. For additional information, get a closer look at our website.
**Disclaimer: This content neither is a piece of medical document nor does it imply any suggestion on the patients.