Pediatric Dentistry
- This is a specialized branch of dentistry dealing with children, their management, complaint, and treatment
- Treating children is a bit complex, because of their smaller mouth openings, their sense of fear and anxiety, which is justified
- Hence preventing dental disease in children is of paramount importance than treating them
- Children should be refrained from eating too many chocolates, pastries, and junk food, which is not good both for their physical and dental health
- The habit of brushing twice daily should be inculcated in them very early in life
- Adverse habits like thumb sucking and tongue thrusting should be dealt with very early in life
- Care should be given to ensure that milk or any food items do not remain on teeth after consumption, because they can cause potential dental damages
- Children are provided with 20 teeth in their primary dentition which progresses to 32 teeth in the permanent dentition
- Maintaining the 20 primary teeth is of utmost importance for the healthy development of jaw bone and permanent dentition
- Pit and fissure sealants can be applied on teeth to minimize their vulnerability to dental caries
- Cavities have to be filled up early
- Cavities that become painful have to be root canal treated and restored with crowns
- Painless injections make all treatments completely pain free
- Smaller size of the teeth and softer bone help in treatment prognosis
- Extraction of primary teeth should be avoided and if done,the space has to be preserved with space maintainers
- Exfoliating teeth and erupting teeth have to be keenly observed
- Treating a child’s tooth is easy but managing the child's psychology provides the challenge
- Obtaining the child's trust,maintaining a positive relationship and clear communication with the parents go a long way in successful paedodontic treatments
