{"id":363,"date":"2015-07-06T16:13:26","date_gmt":"2015-07-06T16:13:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.viennapleasantdental.com\/?page_id=363"},"modified":"2015-07-06T16:13:26","modified_gmt":"2015-07-06T16:13:26","slug":"when-should-children-have-their-first-dental-visit","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/cornerstonedentalva.com\/procedures\/pediatric-dentistry\/when-should-children-have-their-first-dental-visit\/","title":{"rendered":"When Should Children Have Their First Dental Visit?"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"content\">\n<div id=\"StylizedImage\">\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/styles.prosites.com\/litesite\/2018\/GenedImages\/Stylized\/s_Pediatric%20Dentistry-585955510.jpg\" id=\"ctl00_ImageFlareStylized1_ImageFlareStylized1\">\n        <\/div>\n<p>    <script type=\"text\/javascript\">\n\/\/&lt;![CDATA[\nSys.WebForms.PageRequestManager._initialize('ctl00$ContentPlaceHolder1$sm', 'aspnetForm', [], [], [], 90, 'ctl00');\n\/\/]]&gt;\n<\/script><\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"PageService_Line_Item_Name\" id=\"ctl00_ContentPlaceHolder1_PageServiceLineItemName\">\n<div style=\"float:left\"><span id=\"ctl00_ContentPlaceHolder1_Pagename\">When Should Children Have Their First Dental Visit?<\/span><\/div>\n<div style=\"float:right\"><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"PageService_Line_Group_Items\">\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p align=\"justify\">The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD) suggests that parents should make an initial \u201cwell-baby\u201d appointment with a pediatric dentist approximately six months after the emergence of the first tooth, or no later than the child\u2019s first birthday.<\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\">Although this may seem surprisingly early, the incidence of infant and toddler tooth decay has been rising in recent years.&nbsp; Tooth decay and early cavities can be exceptionally painful if they are not attended to immediately, and can also set the scene for poor oral health in later childhood.<\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\">The pediatric dentist is a specialist in child psychology and child behavior, and should be viewed as an important source of information, help, and guidance. &nbsp;Oftentimes, the pediatric dentist can provide strategies for eliminating unwanted oral habits (for example, pacifier use and thumb sucking) and can also help parents in establishing a sound daily oral routine for the child.<\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\"><strong><font style=\"FONT-SIZE: 16px\">What potential dental problems can babies experience?<\/font><\/strong><\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\">A baby is at risk for tooth decay as soon as the first tooth emerges.&nbsp; During the first visit, the pediatric dentist will help parents implement a preventative strategy to protect the teeth from harm, and also demonstrate how infant teeth should be brushed and flossed.<\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\">In particular, infants who drink breast milk, juice, baby formula, soda, or sweetened water from a baby bottle or sippy cup are at high-risk for early childhood caries (cavities).&nbsp; To counteract this threat, the pediatric dentist discourages parents from filling cups with sugary fluids, dipping pacifiers in honey, and transmitting oral bacteria to the child via shared spoons and\/or cleaning pacifiers in their own mouths.<\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\">Importantly, the pediatric dentist can also assess and balance the infant\u2019s fluoride intake. &nbsp;Too much fluoride ingestion between the ages of one and four years old may lead to a condition known as fluorosis in later childhood. &nbsp;Conversely, too little fluoride may render young tooth enamel susceptible to tooth decay.<\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\"><strong><font style=\"FONT-SIZE: 16px\">What happens during the first visit?<\/font><\/strong><\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\">Pediatric dentists have fun-filled, stimulating dental offices. &nbsp;All dental personnel are fully trained to communicate with infants and young children.<\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\">During the initial visit, the pediatric dentist will advise parents to implement a good oral care routine, ask questions about the child\u2019s oral habits, and examine the child\u2019s emerging teeth. &nbsp;The pediatric dentist and parent sit knee-to-knee for this examination to enable the child to view the parent at all times. &nbsp;If the infant\u2019s teeth appear stained, the dentist may clean them. &nbsp;Oftentimes, a topical fluoride treatment will be applied to the teeth after this cleaning.<\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\"><strong><font style=\"FONT-SIZE: 16px\">What questions may the pediatric dentist ask during the first visit?<\/font><\/strong><\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\">The pediatric dentist will ask questions about current oral care, diet, the general health of the child, the child\u2019s oral habits, and the child\u2019s current fluoride intake.<\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\">Once answers to these questions have been established, the pediatric dentist can advise parents on the following issues:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<div align=\"justify\">Accident prevention.<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div align=\"justify\">Adding xylitol and fluoride to the infant\u2019s diet.<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div align=\"justify\">Choosing an ADA approved, non-fluoridated brand of toothpaste for the infant.<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div align=\"justify\">Choosing an appropriate toothbrush.<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div align=\"justify\">Choosing an orthodontically correct pacifier.<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div align=\"justify\">Correct positioning of the head during tooth brushing.<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div align=\"justify\">Easing the transition from sippy cup to adult-sized drinking glasses (12-14 months).<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div align=\"justify\">Eliminating fussing during the oral care routine.<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div align=\"justify\">Establishing a drink-free bedtime routine.<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div align=\"justify\">Maintaining good dietary habits.<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div align=\"justify\">Minimizing the risk of tooth decay.<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div align=\"justify\">Reducing sugar and carbohydrate intake.<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div align=\"justify\">Teething and developmental milestones.<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p align=\"justify\">If you have further questions or concerns about the timing or nature of your child\u2019s first oral checkup, please ask your pediatric dentist.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>\n        <input type=\"button\" onclick=\"document.location.href='\/procedures\/pediatric-dentistry\/'\" value=\"&lt;&lt;\" class=\"Button\" onmouseout=\"this.className='Button'\" onmouseover=\"this.className='ButtonHover'\" id=\"ctl00_ContentPlaceHolder1_btnBack\" name=\"ctl00$ContentPlaceHolder1$btnBack\"><\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When Should Children Have Their First Dental Visit? The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD) suggests that parents should make an initial \u201cwell-baby\u201d appointment with a pediatric dentist approximately six months after the emergence of the first tooth, or no later than the child\u2019s first birthday. Although this may seem surprisingly early, the incidence of&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"parent":135,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_kadence_starter_templates_imported_post":false,"_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"footnotes":""},"taxonomy_info":[],"featured_image_src_large":false,"author_info":{"display_name":"Wayne Clevenger","author_link":"https:\/\/cornerstonedentalva.com\/author\/cierradmin\/"},"comment_info":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cornerstonedentalva.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/363"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cornerstonedentalva.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cornerstonedentalva.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cornerstonedentalva.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cornerstonedentalva.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=363"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cornerstonedentalva.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/363\/revisions"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cornerstonedentalva.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/135"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cornerstonedentalva.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=363"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}