First dental visit

Dental caries is the most prevalent disease of childhood, occurring four times more frequently than asthma. Dental caries is a preventable disease that leads to pain and suffering if left untreated. Early dental visits can prevent suffering, reduce money and time spent on future surgical and emergency dental services, and maximize the chances for children to grow up with healthy, happy smiles.

The increase in treated dental caries suggests that more children are accessing services, but it also highlights an important point: we are getting to children too late. With every year past age one that we delay dental visits, it is increasingly likely that dental disease can no longer be prevented or arrested but will require surgical intervention.

First dental visit should be made within 6 months of eruption of the first primary tooth or by 12 months of age, whichever is earlier.

Early dental visits for infants and their families offer an opportunity to educate and inform parents about their children’s oral health. Advice regarding infant oral hygiene, home and office-based fluoride therapies, dietary practices, caries risk assessment etc. will be given. They discuss information relative to oral habits and dental injury prevention tailored to each child’s age and stage of development. Dental exams in infancy identify disease early and maximize the use of conservative, non-surgical caries management techniques, including SDF (silver diamine fluoride) and fluoride varnish.