Early Dental Care

Crowns

Stainless Steel Crowns

General Information

If a cavity is not caught early, the decay can destroy so much of the tooth structure that there is not enough left to support a filling. A stainless steel crown will save the tooth and prevent the risk of pain and infection. This crown is a pre-made cap that has been trimmed and fitted to your child’s tooth. These crowns cover the entire portion of the tooth at the gum lines. Stainless steel is a long-lasting material in the mouth, and it will serve quite well for the life of the baby (deciduous) teeth. This will keep the tooth and root intact until normal tooth loss occurs.

Stainless steel crowns are used in several circumstances:

Broken teeth that cannot be repaired by normal fillings.
Badly decayed teeth where little tooth structure remains.
To prevent breakage of a tooth which has had a pulpotomy (partial removal of the nerve).

We usually can place the stainless steel crown in one appointment. We will shape your child’s tooth to the necessary form and then trim a stainless steel crown to fit tightly on the tooth. This crown will then be cemented into place. The crowned tooth will usually fall out normally when the permanent tooth is ready to come in.

Instructions for Home Care

There are no restrictions on your daily activities.
Encourage brushing right away. A clean mouth heals faster.
The diet should avoid between-meal sweets to help prevent cavities.
Hard, sticky food should be avoided.

Notify us if any of the following occur:

Gums around the crown becomes swollen or tender.
The tooth that has the crown becomes painful or loose.

Composite Crowns

General Information

Sometimes cavities in your children’s teeth become so large that simple fillings cannot restore the tooth. When this occurs, a full coverage or composite crown may be used to enhance the appearance and strengthen the tooth.

The strength, durability and longevity of the crown are dependent on many factors. At The Super Dentists' office, we do our best to provide your child with the finest possible restoration. By following home care instructions, and maintaining regular six-month check-ups, you can anticipate a long-lasting and attractive restoration for your child.

Composite crowns are used in several circumstances:

Broken teeth that cannot be repaired by normal fillings.
Badly decayed teeth where little tooth structure remains.
To prevent breakage of a tooth which has had a pulpotomy (a partial removal of the nerve).

Instructions for Home Care

Encourage brushing right away. Young children need assistance to brush properly. A clean mouth heals faster.
Avoid hard, sticky foods that can fracture or break the composite crowns.

Note:

Please realize the crown is not as strong as a natural tooth. Explain to your child how important it is that he/she avoids biting into hard objects that put pressure on the crown.
Because the crown has microscopic pores, it has a tendency to darken slightly with time.
Composite crowns have a minimal amount of shades/colors to choose from.

Please notify The Super Dentists' office if any of the following occurs:

Gums around the composite crown becomes swollen or tender.
An abscess (gumboil) forms on the gum above the tooth.
The tooth that has the crown becomes painful or loose.

Pulpotomy

General Information

A deep cavity in your child’s baby tooth may go into the nerve (pulp) of the tooth. In such cases, a pulpotomy is recommended to save the tooth.

A pulpotomy of a baby tooth is similar to, but not as complex as root canal treatment of an adult tooth. Both procedures prevent unnecessary loss of teeth. Your child’s baby teeth are important in guiding the permanent teeth into position and should therefore remain in your child’s mouth until they are lost naturally.

A pulpotomy removes part of the nerve (pulp) of a tooth to prevent or treat the formation of an abscess. A medicated filling material is placed in the nerve space and a cap or a filling is then used to restore your child’s tooth.

We insist on proper brushing, flossing and avoidance of sweet snacks. Your child should then never again have cavities large enough to require another pulpotomy. To ensure this, please be sure you schedule regular check-ups every six months.

General Measures

If local anesthetic was given to your child for the pulpotomy, watch him or her for several hours to make sure he/she is not chewing his/her cheek, tongue or lips which are numb.
Brush and floss as usual. A clean mouth heals faster.
Avoid hard sticky foods that would tend to remove the temporary filling material.

Medications

Medicines must be fitted to your child’s own particular needs. Do not take or give any medications (not even those you buy without a prescription) without telling The Super Dentists and their team of professionals. If drugs are prescribed, carefully follow the instructions on the label.

Sealants

Questions and Answers Regarding Sealants

What are they?
Sealants are plastic coatings that mechanically attach to the tooth.

Where are they placed?
They are placed on the tops and sides of permanent teeth.

Do they prevent decay?
Yes, but not between the teeth. Brushing and flossing are still necessary.

What are they made of and are they dangerous to your health?
They are made of the same type of materials that are used for white fillings in the mouth and they are not dangerous to your health.

What teeth are sealants usually placed on?
They are usually placed on primary and permanent molars and bicuspids.

When is the best time for a sealant to be placed on a tooth?
The best time to place a sealant on a tooth is shortly after it erupts into the mouth.

How are they placed on the teeth?
They are brushed on the teeth.

How long do they last?
Recent studies have shown they last between 5-6 years. Usually the top surface wears from biting pressures and they need to be watched to make sure they are in place. This is usually done at the 6th month recall visit.

Can they be replaced if they are worn off?
Yes.

Are there any restrictions on eating?
Yes, you cannot chew on ice or popcorn kernels. You can eat right after they are placed.

Do your teeth feel different after sealants have been placed?
Yes. For a few days following the placement of the sealants, you feel as though you are biting on the sealant (which you are). This is normal.

Fillings

A “filling” is used to replace and restore your tooth structure when it is damaged due to decay or fractured with a material. The Super Dentists and their team of professionals will replace old, broken-down metal fillings that contain traces of mercury with white fillings (composites) to restore your smile and teeth to a more natural look and feel.

With today’s advancements, no longer do you have to suffer the embarrassment of unsightly and unhealthy silver/mercury fillings or metal margins of the past. Eliminate the dark, black appearance in your teeth with new-age, state-of-the-art, tooth-colored resin.

Bonding

Bonding is a common solution for:

Fixing or repairing chipped or cracked teeth
Reducing unsightly gaps or spaces between teeth
Hiding discoloration or faded areas on the tooth’s surface

Often used to improve the appearance of your teeth and enhance your smile. As the name indicates, composite material, either a plastic or resin, is bonded to an existing tooth.

Composite bonding has many advantages:

It is a quick process, which typically lasts less than one hour.
It does not reduce the tooth’s original structure and is relatively inexpensive.
Composite resins come in many different shades and provide better matching of shades to the natural color of your teeth.
Composite bonds, however, are not as durable and long-lasting as veneers and crowns and may need to be re-touched or replaced in the future.

Composite bonds stain more easily and therefore require proper care and regular cleaning. In order to ensure the longest possible duration of the bonding, composites should be brushed and flossed daily.

Space Maintainers

General Information

If a baby tooth is lost early in life, The Super Dentists and their team of professionals may recommend treatment with a space maintainer. This is an appliance that is designed to hold the space of the extracted primary tooth until the permanent tooth erupts into its proper place.

If the primary tooth is lost due to accident or decay, the surrounding teeth should be held in place to prevent closing of this space. The space maintainer should be used as soon as possible after the loss of the tooth. Teeth may shift position in a few weeks after the loss of the neighboring tooth. This space maintainer is fixed or cemented into your child’s mouth.

Home Care

Hard, sticky foods such as chewing gum and taffy should be avoided.
Encourage foods that do not place unnecessary pressure on the wires of the appliance.
If the appliance is fixed and loosens, an appointment should be made to re-cement it immediately.
Please pay close attention to your child’s brushing and flossing around the teeth where the spacer is cemented.

Expander Instructions and Video

There are various types of space maintainers, and in some cases more than one technique may be tried. With the proper treatment and home care, together we can maintain your child’s dental health.

Teeth Whitening

Your teeth naturally darken over time. Changes in the color of your teeth can be caused by such factors as:

Food and beverages consumed (i.e. coffee, tea and soda).
Childhood medications or illnesses.
Tobacco use.
Improper oral hygiene.

Restoring your natural white smile is a priority for The Super Dentists and their team of professionals. We can provide a variety of options for whitening your smile.

Tooth whitening services are growing in popularity. Everyone sees the growing consumer market focused on whiter teeth. The reality is that over the counter “too-good-to-be-true” solutions typically don’t’ work.

The Super Dentists and their professional staff are trained in teeth whitening using either Laser, Zoom or professionally made take home trays. Our goal is to meet the needs of every patient, and every patient’s needs are different.

Nothing improves your appearance more than a Bright, White SMILE!

To make your child’s first appointment with The Super Dentists and their team of professionals, call (619) DENTIST (336-8478) today!