Pediatric Dentistry
Our dentists and entire staff understand the importance of good oral health for young children. They are here to help protect and restore children’s teeth so that they can speak and eat easily and have a wonderful smile. They understand the growth and development of children’s teeth so they can start children off with good oral health.
We also understand how important taking care of children’s teeth is. We will work with parents to ensure their children are taking good care of their teeth at home. We will also monitor their mouths for any problems so we can catch them early. If needed, we will work with your children’s regular doctor to treat any problems we find.
Home Dental Care
Step 1: Place bristles along the gum line at a 45-degree angle. Gently brush using a circular motion along the outer and inner tooth surfaces.
Step 2: Brush each tooth individually! Tilt brush verticality behind the front teeth.
Step 3: Place the brush against the biting surface of the teeth and use a gentle back and forth motion. Brush the tongue to remove odor-producing bacteria or use a tongue scraper.
Flossing
Wind 18 inches of floss around middle fingers of each hand, and pinch the floss between thumbs and index fingers leaving 1″-2″ length in between.
Use thumbs to direct floss between teeth. Use index fingers to guide floss between the contacts of the lower teeth.
Preventative Dentistry
We recommend routine dental cleanings for several reasons. When we perform a professional cleaning, we remove the buildup of plaque and tartar. We also clean the parts of your child’s teeth that are hard to reach, such as underneath the gums.
After a cleaning, we will polish your child’s teeth so that they shine! We can also apply a fluoride treatment, if necessary, to help prevent tooth decay.
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Cleanings And Exams
Having a dental practice perform a checkup and regular cleaning gives a preventive approach to dental care. These general dentistry treatments help prevent problems with your teeth, gums and jaw bones, or they catch and manage problems before they worsen. During your visit, our doctors will take a picture of the current standing of your dental health and what would be needed to keep your oral hygiene in its best state.
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Sealants
Dental sealant is a plastic coating painted on your teeth. It attaches to your child’s teeth, smoothing the rough edges, depressions, and grooves that are typically found on teeth. It gives your child’s teeth a protective coating, helping to prevent tooth decay and cavities.
Sealants are usually done on the back teeth since they are hard to reach and very irregular. Even if your child brushes and flosses properly, he or she may miss some areas. For this reason, sealants are a good way to protect your child’s teeth.
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Extractions
An extraction is performed to remove a tooth, whether because of disease, crowding, or damage. When extractions are required, the area around the tooth will be numbed and your dentist will remove the tooth. A small amount of bleeding is normal, as your mouth will replace the removed tooth root by forming a blood clot in the area.
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Sedation Dentistry
Since we don’t want fear to hold you back from getting the dental care you need, we offer sedation dentistry using NIROUS OXIDE to improve your experience. One of the most commonly used types of sedation is nitrous oxide, which is also known as laughing gas. This helps many children relax during their procedure.
Nitrous oxide is a combination of two different gases–-oxygen and nitrous oxide. We administer the gas through a small mask placed over your child’s nose. The gas will make your child relax without the full effect of anesthesia.
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Pulpotomies
Pulp is found at the very center of every single tooth. Because of its location, we are not actually able to see it. The main goal of pulpal therapy (also known as pulp therapy) is to save a tooth that is becoming infected. Even though baby teeth eventually leave the mouth, this therapy is in place so that children can keep their baby teeth as long as possible to be able to eat properly.
Having injured or infected pulp can be extremely painful. The pain typically does not go away on its own, and so it is important to seek out treatment as soon as possible. Some of the signs of infected pulp are unexplained pain in the mouth, pain during the night, sensitivity to warm and cold temperatures, and swelling or redness around the tooth.
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Stainless Steel Crown (SSC)
When a child’s teeth are broken down, and has sustained large cavities, stainless steel crown are helpful in treating these teeth. They are made of safe, durable material and resist corrosion, which aids in safeguarding the compromised teeth. It prevents the teeth from more decay and offers full coronal coverage. It also does not harm the growth of permanent teeth and they will fall out at the time when the child’s natural teeth fall out.
Space Maintainers
A space maintainer is made up of bands and wires designed to hold your child’s remaining teeth in place when there is premature loss of his/her baby tooth. It is important to place the space maintainers promptly after a premature tooth loss to give the permanent tooth the best chance to erupt in the correct location. If a space maintainer is not used, the teeth will shift in the open area making it harder or in some situations impossible for the permanent tooth to erupt. Orthodontics is then required to remedy this problem.
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Frenectomy
In the mouth, a frenum or frenulum is a piece of tissue that attaches the upper lip to the gums and the tongue to the floor of the mouth. When the frenum is too thick or too long, it can prevent the movement of the upper lip and the tongue. This can cause tongue-tie or lip-tie, and these conditions can lead to digestive issues, difficulty breastfeeding, speech or airway difficulties, and dental spacing problems.
Frenectomy is a procedure that releases the frenum to allow for normal movement or range of motion of the upper lip and the tongue. Modern surgery technique utilizes laser instead of cutting or a surgical incision. Our office use Biolase laser, a dental soft tissue laser that vaporizes tissue with light energy.
Benefits of Laser Frenectomy over other methods:
- Quick procedure
- No bleeding
- No sutures
- Sedation or general anesthesia not necessary
- Fast healing and recovery laser stimulates bio-regeneration
- Minimal pain or discomfort
- Less risk for infection lasers sterilize at the touch
- Less invasive
After the procedure, stretching exercises are key to get the best result. The mouth heals rapidly, and the frenum may reattach prematurely causing the limitation and symptoms to return. Stretching exercises with quick and precise movements are best.
Adult Dentistry
Helping our patients maintain a healthy mouth and smile is the main goal of general dentistry. We prefer to provide more minor, preventive care than to see patients suffer with more intensive treatments from a problem that was not managed in time. We want to ensure that your oral health is in its optimal state and positively contributing to the health of your entire body. We are here to brighten your smile and pave the way for a brighter life.
Orthodontic Services
All Star Kids Family Dental is excited to serve our patients. Our ultimate goal is to craft you a perfect smile that you are proud to show off. After your first examination and completion of X-rays, we will be happy to discuss all of your options. We are proud to offer several different treatment options for straighter teeth and a beautiful smile. We understand the importance of showing you all of our options and discussing them thoroughly with you. We want you to find the best treatment option for you, no matter what you choose.
We are proud to offer the following services to achieve the smile of your dreams: