Pediatric Dentistry

Pediatric Dentistry is a branch of dentistry that is concerning with children below 14 years of age (from birth up to adolescence). The development of milk teeth starts even before the birth of a baby and baby teeth begin to appear between 6-8 months of age. Some babies get their teeth early and some get them late. Usually, the first baby teeth that appear are the lower front teeth.

Kids start losing their first set of teeth (milk teeth) by the age of 6 – 7 years which are replaced by permanent or secondary teeth. Both primary & secondary sets of teeth are to be safeguarded (taken good care of) by the parents. Parents / guardians of the kids are the ones who have to be proactive in watching over hygiene of the kids’ teeth on a daily basis. The parent’s role in taking care of their child’s teeth is highly important. Good oral health practices should begin at home, when the child is about 12 months and continued throughout adult life. Lack of sufficient oral care would result in children to face possible tooth decay due to dental caries that can even lead to serious complications for life time. Researches show that early childhood dental caries that is an infectious tooth disease is very common in children even when compared to asthma.

At what age should my child first visit a dentist ?

Ideally a child has to visit a pediatric dentist by his / her first birthday. Preventive medicine has always stressed on well-checks for children. This concept is long been applied to dentistry and focuses on the necessity for regular visits to pediatric dentists once in every 6 months even before anything emergent occurs. At FMS Dental, our senior pediatric dentists evaluate each and every child thoroughly and make sure the child doesn’t have cavities. Also periodical fluoride varnish application and sealant administration minimizes the possibility of dental cavities in the future. No drills, no scary instruments – prevention is better than cure!