I’m not sure what to do for my son. He’s got molars which are about a 1/3 of the way decayed, as well as some cavities on other teeth. I do take him to the dentist but he’s not very cooperative with getting any work done. We’ve tried it with me in the room and without me there. It doesn’t seem to matter. What do you recommend I do?
Carol
Dear Carol,
Let’s start with why your son is getting this much decay. It’s obvious you care about him and are not neglecting his care. This level of decay, at that age, however, is usually linked to frequent snacking throughout the day. You may need to do some tough love and not allow him many snacks. It will be good for him to be hungry by the time meal time comes along.
As for what to do with his rotting teeth, you’ll obviously want to fill the cavities. Make sure you pediatric dentist is using composite fillings on him. Some pediatric dentists say children can’t have them, but that is not true. It’s more a matter of it being difficult to do on children because of their wiggly natures. Fortunately, there is a way around that which we’ll discuss in a moment.
The benefits to composite fillings are significant. The most comforting to parents being that the fillings are 100% mercury-free, as opposed to the silver amalgam fillings whose main ingredient is mercury.
The molars are 1/3 of the way decayed. This is too large for a filling to work. They will need to be crowned. You can get a pre-fabricated stainless steel crown which won’t cost as much as the custom made ones.
His molars need to stay in place until he’s around twelve and his adult molars begin to come in. Otherwise, his teeth will shift into the open space, leading to crowding.
Dealing with Uncooperative Children
I know you said your son won’t cooperate with the dentist, so by now you’re probably like “Yes, but how do I get him to allow the dentist to do the work?”
The simplest solution would be to find a pediatric dentist who offers dental sedation. This is safe to use on children and will completely relax your son so he can get the care he needs. In fact, most children are so relaxed they sleep completely through their dental work.
If you don’t have a pediatric dentist in your area which offers sedation, you can see a general dentist who treats children. They are more than qualified. The important thing now is that you get this decay under control or you could end up with a dental emergency on your hands.
This blog is brought to you by Auburn, AL Family Dentist Dr. Raymond Bolt.