7 Warning Signs Your Child Needs to Visit a Pediatric Dentist
Generally, children aren’t the best at maintaining excellent dental hygiene. Even worse, children like snacking on sugary food items, increasing their risk of oral diseases such as tooth decay and gum disease. As a parent, it’s your responsibility to help your child with their dental needs to guarantee a healthy mouth for many years.
Besides feeding your child healthy foods and helping them clean their mouth, taking them to routine pediatric check-ups is essential. Even when your child doesn’t have existing oral conditions, taking them for regular pediatric check-ups can help remove plaque and bacteria build up in their mouth, significantly reducing their risk of tooth decay and gum disease.
If your child’s next appointment isn’t due, but you’ve noticed something that doesn’t look right about their oral health, you should take them to a pediatric dentist as soon as possible. Early treatment helps treat the condition and prevent future complications. Contact our dentist for children’s dentistry in Lexington, MA.
Signs your Child Needs Pediatric Care
If you’re unsure whether your child is experiencing an oral problem, below are seven signs to watch out for:
- Oral pain
If your child complains about oral pain, that’s enough reason that all is not well, and you should take them to a pediatric dentist. You can talk to the child and try to understand how severe the pain is when it happens and how long it lasts.
Oral pain can indicate a cavity, dental trauma, or bite problems. Regardless of the cause, prompt treatment is essential to alleviate the pain and address the underlying condition.
- Teeth sensitivity
Like pain, tooth sensitivity is also a sign that your child’s mouth isn’t well. If your child regularly complains about discomfort when eating or drinking cold, hot, or sugary items, seek pediatric care.
The sensitivity could indicate a cavity, or maybe your child fell and broke or chipped their tooth. Whatever the case, you should take them to a pediatric dentist to determine the underlying problem and prevent serious complications.
- Bleeding gums
If you notice blood in the child’s mouth or toothbrush, it could indicate something is wrong with their gums. Swollen or sensitive gums can indicate gum infections, severe tooth decay, or injuries. Take your child for pediatric care to identify the condition and prevent further complications.
- Your child hasn’t had dental check-ups.
Even if your child’s dental health is excellent, you should still take them to routine pediatric check-ups. You should make the first appointment as soon as they turn one or once their first tooth erupts.
The dentist will check their mouth to ensure normal tooth and jawbone development. If any problems are detected, the dentist can correct them easily at an early age. Schedule your child’s next appointment with our pediatric dentist in Lexington, MA.
- Stained teeth
If your child’s pearly whites are dull or changing color, it’s essential to take them to a pediatric dentist. Teeth stains in children can result from poor dental hygiene, cavities, and certain medications.
Visit a pediatric dentist to identify the cause and prevent further stains. The dentist can also recommend whitening treatment to restore your child’s beautiful smile.
- A loose or damaged tooth
Generally, your kid’s baby teeth can become loose and fall out to give way to the adult teeth. However, seeing a pediatric dentist is critical if your child’s adult tooth is loose, chipped, cracked, or broken. The dentist will establish the cause and provide the necessary treatment to save the tooth.
- Bad breath
If your child has bad breath that worsens and isn’t caused by foods or drinks, they need pediatric dentistry treatment. Sometimes bad breath can indicate an infection, and immediate care is necessary to prevent further complications.
Schedule an Appointment Today
Does your child have an oral problem? Or perhaps you’re looking to schedule their next dental check-up? Contact us at Lexington Dental Group in Lexington.