Child’s First Appointment

Child’s First Appointment

It is of utmost importance for children to get their first dental checkup done at an early age. A small child starts teething at six months, and further, they develop primary or milk teeth. After six to eight years, they start losing their milk teeth, and a permanent set of teeth start emerging. Milk teeth form the basis of permanent teeth, and if proper care is not taken, the problems can remain for a lifetime. The parents or the primary caregiver must not ignore taking the child to a dentist during their early years. We at GreenBrook Dentistry believe you should visit a dentist with your child as soon as their first tooth erupts.

The purpose of this early checkup is manifold: It makes the child comfortable and takes the fear and apprehension away. This is also the perfect time for the dentist to examine the development of the child’s mouth, and any developmental problem can be detected at an early stage, and preventive measures can be advised. Certain childhood problems like baby bottle caries, prolonged thumb sucking, teething problems, and rampant or repeated caries can be prevented.

It is very important to retain the milk or baby teeth for a certain period of time until the permanent teeth erupt. The milk teeth act as space maintainers in children, thereby maintaining the jaw shape and growth. Also, any infection in the milk teeth can severely affect the underlying permanent tooth bud, thereby causing them to erupt abnormally and congenital enamel defects.