The Top Five Questions Patients Ask a Kids Dentist like Dr Rodriguez DMD
In our kids dentist office, Dr Rodriguez DMD loves meeting new patients. We treat both children and adults and consider ourselves to be your lifelong partner in oral health. We can grow with your child, helping them to stay healthy now and as they grow up. This continuity of care will help them as they age since we will prevent previous dental issues from reoccurring in the future. If you haven’t found a dentist for your kids yet, Dr Rodriguez DMD invites you to call and schedule an appointment so that we can get to know your family and learn about any oral health concerns that you have. During these appointments our patients ask a variety of questions and here are some that we hear on a frequent basis. How often should my child really brush their teeth?Your kids need to brush their teeth at least twice a day and more often if they are eating sugary treats. Cavities are a serious problem among children. Even the CDC has acknowledged cavities as being the most frequently occurring infectious disease in kids, something that we can help to prevent by cleaning their teeth. We do, however, need your help and brushing their teeth twice a day is part of that.When should my child visit a kids dentist for the first time?You can bring your child to see the dentist as soon as they have most of their teeth, around 12 to 18 months old. No matter what, your child should definitely see the dentist before starting preschool. One warning – baby bottle tooth decay is extremely common so even though they are baby teeth, they can get cavities just like adult teeth. This makes it important to care for their small teeth just like you would yours.What do I do when my child has a toothache?You should start by brushing and flossing their teeth. It is fairly common for kids to get a toothache because something has gotten stuck in between their teeth, and they don’t know it, especially when they’re small. You may solve the problem by helping them to clean their teeth. Otherwise, this could be a sign of a common cavity and the need for treatment. Schedule an appointment and we will check it out.How do I protect my child’s teeth?If your kids are in sports, you should have them wear a mouthguard in order to protect their teeth and prevent an injury. Simultaneously, Dr Rodriguez DMD recommends that they have a yearly fluoride treatment and brush with a fluoride toothpaste. This is a simple way to strengthen their teeth and prevent something like a cavity from occurring.Help! Their tooth got knocked out. What should I do?This can be frightening and as a kids dentist, we want you to call us right away. The first step you should take is to stop the bleeding. If you have gauze, use that. Otherwise, you may want to use a damp cloth. If it is a baby tooth, we will make sure that the area is clean so that an infection doesn’t set in, but we won’t necessarily replace the tooth. If they knocked out an adult tooth, we might be able to save it if you put the tooth in milk and come in immediately.