Pediatric Dentistry

What is pediatric dentistry?

Pediatric dentistry focuses on the oral health of children from infancy to adulthood. Caring for your child’s teeth and gums ensures they don’t experience tooth decay and gum disease. Visiting a pediatric dentist, such as Dr. Liu, for regular checkups is an essential part of maintaining your child’s oral health.

Dr. Liu can also provide orthodontic services, which means correcting crooked teeth and other problems when the permanent teeth come through.

What happens when my child sees a pediatric dentist?

Pediatric dentists have special training in treating children of all ages and are highly skilled in ensuring your child feels safe and comfortable.

A regular pediatric dental checkup is much the same as the checkup you would have at U & I Smile, just geared toward the age of your child and any special needs they have. For instance, you can hold your child on your lap if they feel distressed about sitting in the dentist’s chair.

Once your child has visited Dr. Liu a few times and they know what to expect, they soon lose any apprehension. A regular exam includes cleaning and fluoride treatments, and an application of sealant to help prevent cavities.

Pediatric dentists also provide preventive dental care and advice, such as showing your child how to brush their teeth and recommending any nutritional changes in your child’s diet.

What other pediatric dentistry services might my child need?

There are many potential problems that could affect your child’s oral health, and pediatric dentistry can prevent, treat, and advise on all these issues.

In younger children, Dr. Liu can help with teething problems and offer advice on issues such as thumb sucking and the use of pacifiers.

She can also help if your baby has tongue-tie, which is when the membrane attaching your baby’s tongue to the floor of their mouth is too short. Tongue-tie can interfere with breastfeeding, in which case Dr. Liu can release your baby’s tongue by severing the membrane.

Dr. Liu can carry out treatment and repair broken teeth or teeth that have been knocked out, as well as tooth cavities and defects in the teeth. She also provides mouthguards to prevent your child’s teeth from being damaged or knocked out when they’re playing sports.

As well as diagnosing and treating gum disease and conditions like pediatric periodontal disease and mouth ulcers, Dr. Liu can diagnose and treat oral health problems that sometimes arise as complications of diseases such as:

• Diabetes
• Congenital heart defects
• Asthma
• Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

They can also treat problems in developing teeth, for example, if your child’s permanent teeth have root canals that aren’t fully formed.

If you’d like to arrange an appointment with a pediatric dentist, call Gentle Dental Care today.