Pediatric Dentistry

Pediactric dentistry is the branch of dentistry dealing with children from birth through adolescence. Pediatric Dentistry focuses intimately on pediatric/adolescent growth and development, disease causality and prevention, child psychology and management, and all aspects of the highly-specialized Pediatric restorative techniques and modalities.

Pediatric Dentists work toward the maintenance of primary teeth until they are naturally lost. This is due to the importance they serve in permitting children to chew properly and therefore maintain good nutrition, their role in speech development, and the maintenance of space for the eventual eruption of the permanent teeth. Because of their special interest and commitment Pediatric Dentists are able to provide the most up to date treatment options.

Children are not just small adults. The primary teeth are anatomically and physiologically different from adult teeth. Children are emotionally and intellectually different to adults. Young children, pre-teens and teenagers have different psychological needs and expectations therefore they need to be treated in a different manner.The early experiences that a child has in the dental chair will profoundly influence his future attitude towards his oral health in general and dental treatment in particular.
The Pediatric Dentist is aware of all these issues.

They are trained to:

1. Promote feelings of trust and confidence in the child patient.
2. Help the child patient to feel good about visiting the dentist.
3. Teach the child patient to care for his/her teeth.
4. Detect and treat dental caries.
5. Guide dental growth and development.
6. Avoid future dental problems.
7. Give the parents of nutrition education and counseling for the purposes of reducing caries in their children.
8.  Perform preventive dentistry in children.
9. Perform dental treatments and preventive dentistry in teens and special needs patients.