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Old 06-25-2010, 01:11 PM
 
2,839 posts, read 9,960,148 times
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According to the LLL and our dentist, night nursing does not cause cavities.

My DD fell when she was 2 and needed her four front teeth repaired. They were not metal caps, though. Some kids have enamel problems that make them more susceptible to decay. No reputable dentist would place metal crowns because a parent thought they looked cool. I believe the reason that they use metal as opposed to the white porcelein crowns in children is because they are less likely to break.
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Old 07-08-2010, 11:14 PM
 
13,221 posts, read 9,830,157 times
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I'll second the post from sskkc regarding ignorance on the part of parents. My daughter had a bad (unknown) stomach virus when she was 16 months old that caused her to be hospitalized for three days due to dehydration concerns from throwing up. She continued to be sick for a couple of months afterwards and her pediatrician came to the conclusion she could no longer tolerate cow's milk and encouraged us to switch to soy milk only. She would only drink it out of a bottle and we were worried about her nutritional intake and allowed her to do so, as she was having a hard time keeping food down.

Long story short she now has extensive decay in her front teeth that is most likely caused by the soy milk she was taking in the bottle - I never gave her juice and of course she's never had soda but who knew soy milk could be so destructive? She doesn't take a bottle any more but the damage was done in a very short time and like raisins and fruit snacks soy milk is incredibly sticky and clings to the teeth, and even though it has less sugar than milk the sugars left behind in the mouth do terrible damage. Unfortunately by the time the signs of decay show up the harm has been done.

I am absolutely sick to my stomach that my ignorance caused this problem for my child and now we are in for dental surgery under sedation and around 5 grand to fix the issue. What's worse is that my daughter eats tons of fruit and veggies and probably didn't need the soy milk to supplement her diet at all. Be careful what liquids you give, even if your pediatrician suggests it. I have learned to better research some of the decisions I make but I remain horrendously guilt ridden over it.
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Old 07-09-2010, 05:49 AM
 
Location: St. Louis Metro East
515 posts, read 1,553,620 times
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My youngest son also has caps on his baby molars. In our case, he was diabetic, and we didn't know it, so his then out-of-control diabetes and the high sugar content of pretty much his entire body were to blame. Since bringing the diabetes under control, he has had only one cavity at all.

~D
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Old 07-09-2010, 08:14 AM
 
1,135 posts, read 2,377,814 times
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Based on my observations, kids with caps on their baby teeth almost always come from economically-disadvantaged households. They are necessary because their teeth have rotted, often from being allowed to fall asleep with bottles (especially juice and sugar water).

Most cavitities can be prevented by good oral hygiene and by having a dentist put sealents on the child's teeth whenever they have them cleaned. I imagine that many poor families don't have dental insurance and can't afford the out of pocket cost (about $75) of the sealent.

Furthermore, there have been news reports about greedy dentists who put unnecessary silver caps on children who have Medicaid, which covers this service. It's a widespread type of Medicaid fraud.
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Old 07-09-2010, 08:20 AM
 
3,422 posts, read 10,876,068 times
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I have dental insurance and the only time I have been offered sealants was when the Dept of Health came to school and was doing sealants for free on the 1st and 2nd graders. In fact, I think one of my children was deemed "not yet ready" because some of her molars were not in yet?

Do you mean fluoride treatments? Those we get every visit.

Or maybe I should find a pediatric dentist? Mine also had not suggested an orthodontic evaluation for my daughter yet the pediatrician took one look at her mouth and said, "you might want to talk to one to see if now is the time to start working on her teeth" - which we are doing after we move - which means we will be looking for a new dentist anyway. Do the pediatric dentists more often offer sealants?
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Old 07-09-2010, 09:03 AM
 
Location: here
24,873 posts, read 36,055,404 times
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Here is my personal experience.

My son had a dental exam at about 4 years old. No x-rays were taken. We were told all was fine. We never ever put him to bed with a bottle. We brushed his teeth 2/day. We diluted his apple juice. We didn't go overboard with the candy.

About 9 months later we took him for his 2nd exam. Again I was told all was fine. I am the one who pointed out a little brown spot on a tooth. Only then were x-rays taken and it was discovered that he had 14 cavities! I was stunned! If I hadn't been the one to mention it, it would have gone undetected for who knows how much longer. Apparently he has "soft enamel".

Anyway, he needed so much work, he had to be put under general anesthesia. The first dentist wanted to cap or pull all 4 of his top front teeth! I said no way and found another dentist who agreed to leave them alone. 2 of them have now fallen out on their own.

So he has 2 silver crowns on top back teeth. They are visible when he smiles big. I never even found out if we had decided to cap the front teeth if they would have been white or silver. I have had nightmares about him waking up from his dental work with 4 silver front teeth.

I hope no one does this because they think it looks cool. I think there is a medical reason for it. I'm just glad we didn't end up having to do it.

Last edited by Kibbiekat; 07-09-2010 at 09:04 AM.. Reason: typo
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Old 07-09-2010, 09:08 AM
 
Location: here
24,873 posts, read 36,055,404 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sskkc View Post
I have a 7 year old with two silver teeth (spacers so there will be less for the orthodontist to do later). I do not see it as "cool". It is a sign of my ignorance.

I mistakenly believed that allowing my daughter "fruit snacks" (of the gummy variety) were an okay snack, and that raisins were "good" for her. She's been seeing a dentist every 6 months since she was 4. But apparently her teeth are now too close together for flossing to be effective or even possible in some spots.

$1200 worth of dental work so far. So NOT "cool". I've got another child who I fed the same things, but for 2 1/2 years longer. But he's never had a cavity- much less 2 rotting baby teeth and two other cavities!

We no longer have anything "sticky" in our home to eat!
similar situation here. My older son's teeth are really close together and almost impossible to floss. My younger son has some space and hasn't had a single problem. We didn't do anything different as far as what they ate or how often they brushed. My older son always seems to get the short end of the stick.
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Old 07-09-2010, 09:59 AM
 
Location: Oxford, Connecticut
526 posts, read 999,055 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by lisdol View Post
I have dental insurance and the only time I have been offered sealants was when the Dept of Health came to school and was doing sealants for free on the 1st and 2nd graders. In fact, I think one of my children was deemed "not yet ready" because some of her molars were not in yet?

Do you mean fluoride treatments? Those we get every visit.

Or maybe I should find a pediatric dentist? Mine also had not suggested an orthodontic evaluation for my daughter yet the pediatrician took one look at her mouth and said, "you might want to talk to one to see if now is the time to start working on her teeth" - which we are doing after we move - which means we will be looking for a new dentist anyway. Do the pediatric dentists more often offer sealants?
My children have been having regular pediatric dental visits since age 3 and they get a sealant applied every other time (once a year). Flouride treatments are separate and the dentist also recommends drinking flourinated water if you don't live in an area where the water is flourinated.
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Old 07-09-2010, 10:13 AM
 
577 posts, read 1,755,567 times
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Some of this seems excessive. The dietary things I understand because our diets and "fast foods" have changed so much in the last 30 years. But flossing a babies teeth? Come on. I grew up with some brushing of my teeth but never flossed until I was much older. My teeth are very close together but the idea of holding down a baby and flossing their teeth just seems ridiculous to me.

Same thing with the dental care for dogs nowadays. I had dogs growing up.. they NEVER got their teeth brushed or any dental care at the vet. Now they act like you are abusing your dog if you dont have expensive dental care done by a vet. Give me a break.. our dogs always lived well into their teens and they were big dogs. They got milk bones and an occasional beef bone to chew on but that's it besides their dry kibble. I think majority of this is overkill.
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Old 07-09-2010, 10:33 AM
 
1,135 posts, read 2,377,814 times
Reputation: 1514
Quote:
Originally Posted by lisdol View Post
I have dental insurance and the only time I have been offered sealants was when the Dept of Health came to school and was doing sealants for free on the 1st and 2nd graders. In fact, I think one of my children was deemed "not yet ready" because some of her molars were not in yet?

Do you mean fluoride treatments? Those we get every visit.

Or maybe I should find a pediatric dentist? Mine also had not suggested an orthodontic evaluation for my daughter yet the pediatrician took one look at her mouth and said, "you might want to talk to one to see if now is the time to start working on her teeth" - which we are doing after we move - which means we will be looking for a new dentist anyway. Do the pediatric dentists more often offer sealants?
Sealants are different than the flouride treatments they do at every dental visit. They apply the sealent to the molars only and let it dry with a special UV light. They don't do them as often as the flouride treatments. In my original post I may have said they're done at every visit, but I think they're only done once a year, or as new molars grow in.

The dentist we go to is more proactive and more expensive than most so that could be why he orders the sealants so regularly.

Personally, I don't mind paying for the portion that insurance doesn't cover b/c I had horrible tooth decay as a child. Every single one of my molars has fillings or a crown and I've had more root canals than I can remember. If sealants had been available in the 1970s it would have saved me money in the long run. Dental repairs are a lot more expensive than proactive care. I'd love to spare my girls all the time and expense I've wasted fixing my teeth.
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