Of all the sights that bring a grown man or woman to knees; the worst is when a child is crying in pain. It does not matter how tough a person or how much he or she can tolerate pain himself or herself; but none of us can bear to see our children suffering throbbing pain that brings tears to their eyes. For a child, the emotion is plain and simple, a throbbing tooth evokes intense pain, and a child cannot help but cry.
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A toothache is not to be neglected
A cry for you, as parent, to take action. A child cannot pick up the phone and dial the nearest dentist that accepts children; it has to be you. A child does not understand why the tooth hurts or why he cannot chew on a particular side. Why the side of the face is swollen. Moreover, a child can rarely accurately locate the tooth that is causing the pain, it usually needs a dental X-ray to locate the offending tooth. It is usually a back tooth, a molar, that is the culprit.
How do we know? We are dentists in Mississauga that routinely provide emergency dental care in Mississauga and Oakville, Etobicoke and Brampton as well as visiting tourists. When you have a child (or an adult) in need of a dentist, call Applewood Village Dentistry in south Mississauga to schedule an appointment. We provide all aspects of childrens’ dentistry, including childrens’ root canals, that can save severely decayed back teeth. If a tooth cannot be saved, we can even make a replacement so that the child’s teeth do not drift into the open space and cause crooked or crowded teeth in adult life. This simple appliance is called a space maintainer and can literally save you hundreds or thousands of dollars in later life in orthodontic fees! (see photo)
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Band and loop type space maintainer to hold the room for adult premolar
The youngest child we have worked on is 2 years old; and if your child will cooperate, we can have a lot of work completed per sitting. We have a children’s play zone in our reception, all of us are kid-friendly and we have a lot of children who routinely come in and get a cleaning with our hygienist, Linda. She is great with children and everyone loves her for her gentle hand and thorough technique. Every room is further equipped with a TV with more than 70 channels, so a child can watch Dora the Explorer or Spongebob Squarepants while we work in their mouths. The TV screen can be tilted at any angle that is needed, so a child is always kept occupied visually, while we work at peace.
The more a child visits a dentist, the more comfortable he or she gets and more likely to get a regular cleaning and checkup. We are more likely to catch decay in its early stages and treat it before it causes pain or swelling or an abscess. A child that grows up fearing the dentist is more likely to avoid going to the dentist in later life as well, causing dental problems to build up and be serious. Good habits begin early in life. If you are going to the dentist yourself, say, for a routine cleaning, then make it a point to take your young one with you too. This is called behaviour modelling and the child understands that the dental professional is actually helping mommy to get a clean and white smile and not hurting by poking around the mouth. This is positive reinforcement of watched actions and goes a long way to alleviate dental fears in a child. Similarly, at home, a child watches mom or dad brush and floss at bedtime, and will eventually follow suit without much effort.
Whatever your child needs done, either we will do it ourself, or refer you to an appropriate pediatric dentist so that dental problems do not get out of hand. The most important decision you will make is to pick up the phone and call. The rest is up to us.
