Pediatric Dentistry – Newark, CA

Dental Sealants

It takes time for children to develop their brushing skills, and until they do they typically need a little extra help keeping their molars clean. We can place dental sealants on the chewing surfaces of your child’s hard-to-reach teeth, thus keeping them safe from the bacteria and food particles that can lead to decay. Applying dental sealants is relatively simple, but rest assured that the treatment has long-lasting results. In fact, in many cases, well-placed dental sealants can help keep the teeth safe for a decade or longer.

Silver Diamine Fluoride

Silver diamine fluoride is also known as SDF, and it is becoming an increasingly popular way to treat cavities without having to place a traditional filling. The silver component of SDF can help kill the bacteria responsible for causing decay. Meanwhile, the fluoride component assists with the remineralization of the teeth, effectively reversing some of the damage done. Many children who are suffering from cavities can benefit from an SDF treatment.  

Tooth-Colored Fillings

Sometimes a filling is necessary for treating a decayed tooth. However, we realize that your child may be less than enthusiastic about getting a dark-colored filling that draws the wrong kind of attention from their peers. In order to help your child continue to feel confident about their appearance, we can provide tooth-colored fillings, which are made out of lifelike composite resin. By shading this material, we can help your child’s filling blend in with their natural teeth. On top of that, composite resin can form a strong bond with the tooth, and as a result, it reduces the amount of undercutting needed to place the filling.

Pulp Therapy

Toothaches can have multiple causes, but they are often a sign of infected or damaged dental pulp. This type of issue needs to be treated as soon as possible in order to put a stop to your little one’s pain and prevent the infection from spreading to other parts of the mouth. We can perform pulp therapy to take the upper part of the pulp out of your child’s tooth. This treatment can reduce your child’s chances of needing to have the tooth in question extracted later down the line.

Non-Nutritive Oral Habits

While there’s nothing wrong with infants sucking their thumbs, you need to monitor this type of non-nutritive habit to make sure that it stops between the ages of 2 and 4. Non-nutritive habits that remain unbroken for too long can lead to orthodontic problems. If you’re having trouble getting your child to stop sucking their thumb, let us know; we can help you figure out a way to deal with the problem before it leads to any major issues.

Tooth Extractions

You can normally expect your child’s baby teeth to fall out on their own. But what if this doesn’t happen when it should? Baby teeth that remain in the mouth longer than they’re supposed to can lead to serious oral health issues, which is why we may recommend having them removed to make sure that they don’t get in the way of the permanent teeth. Tooth extractions might be necessary in other situations as well; for example, if a severely infected tooth is beyond the point where it can be saved, removing it can be the best option for stopping the problem from spreading any further.

Athletic Mouthguards

Making sure that your child has the right safety equipment is imperative before you let them head out onto the field or court. One piece of equipment that they should definitely be wearing is a mouthguard. Even in sports with little to no contact, there’s always a chance of your child getting hit in the mouth; when this happens, a mouthguard can help protect their teeth and gums from damage. A mouthguard personalized by a dentist tends to offer better protection than the kind that can be bought over the counter.