Local Dental Care - Pediatric Dental Hygiene

Space Maintainers Save Your Child's Smile

Space maintainers can save your child's smile. They are specially designed to protect space for your child's permanent teeth when baby teeth are prematurely lost because of injury or decay. If a tooth is lost too soon, your dentist may suggest a space maintainer to prevent future dental problems.

What's the Problem if Baby Teeth Come Out Too Soon?

The primary teeth or baby teeth play an important role in your child's developing mouth. They help in the normal development of the muscles and jawbones. Primary teeth serve as natural space maintainers, holding the space until the permanent teeth push them out. If baby teeth are lost too early, the other teeth can drift into the vacant space. This might cause teeth to come in crooked or unable to erupt into the gum, which leads to malocclusion, the improper positioning of the teeth and jaws. It also can cause a permanent tooth to appear prematurely, before what's best for a child's long-term dental health.

What Is a Space Maintainer?

It's a small device made of either plastic or metal and custom-fit to the child's mouth. It is a firmly fixed appliance, consisting of a band or temporary crown attached to a tooth on one side of the empty tooth socket. A wire loop or spring bridges the space to a tooth on the other side of the socket. Rarely, a dentist may make a removable space maintainer that is like a retainer or mouth guard.

How Does a Space Maintainer Help?

• Holds the empty space open, preventing movement of the other teeth, and gives the permanent tooth the needed time to take its natural position.
• May reduce or eliminate future orthodontic treatment.

What Dental Care Is Required?

Good oral hygiene is important. The space maintainer should be kept clean and teeth need to be brushed at least twice a day and flossed daily. Certain things must be avoided with a space maintainer in place -- no sticky sweets, chewing gum, or tugging on it with either fingers or the tongue.

Most children adjust within a few days to the new experience of a space maintainer. It can dramatically make a difference in a child's dental health and be worth any temporary discomfort or inconvenience.

by Brian J. Gray, DDS, MAGD, FICO

+Jim Du Molin is a leading Internet search expert helping individuals and families connect with the right dentist in their area. Visit his author page.

Fresh Talk For Your Mouth

As a teen, you've got plenty to do -- going to school, homework, participating in after-school activities, spending time with friends, perhaps working a job, and other time commitments. Caring for your appearance also is a top priority, including your teeth. By doing so, you're rewarded with a bright, winning smile that really attracts attention!

Sometimes I Come Home So Tired After Long, Busy Days, I Don't Feel Like Brushing My Teeth. Does it Really Matter?

Yes, it does! If you haven't brushed your teeth since the morning, your mouth is filled with cavity-causing bacteria. When the sugar and starch from the day's food, snacks, or drinks combine with plaque (that sticky film on your teeth), an acid is produced. That acid attacks your tooth enamel. If this is repeated often, those acid attacks can break down enamel and cause cavities while you sleep. So, those few extra minutes it takes to brush your teeth really are important for cavity prevention.

What Can I Do to Make Sure My Breath Is Really Fresh?

Commercial products claim they will make your breath fresher, but the only way to make sure your breath is truly fresh is to practice good oral hygiene. In fact, too many breath mints and hard candies with sugar can lead to tooth decay. If you are constantly using breath mints, breath sprays, or mouth rinses in an effort to cover up bad breath, you may have a problem that needs correction.

If you neglect daily hygiene over time, bad breath can become a symptom of more serious dental problems. Teeth that are not cleaned properly become a place for bacteria to multiply in your mouth, causing cavities and gum disease. Gum disease produces bad breath and that's gross! So brush, floss, and brush or scrape your tongue.

If you smoke, bad breath comes with the habit. Smoking also puts you at an increased risk for developing gum disease. Brushing and flossing your teeth may slow the development of gum disease but smoking can lead to serious oral health problems, including oral cancer.

Can Dieting or Taking Medications Affect My Oral Health?

Hunger can contribute to bad breath. This is because of the chemical changes that occur as your body turns fat and protein into the energy it needs. Chemical changes caused by taking prescription or over-the-counter medications can also affect mouth odor.

Isn't a Mouth guard Just for Those Who Wear Braces?

No! Every year, more than 200,000 people are treated by dentists and oral surgeons for sports-related injuries, including broken and knocked-out teeth, concussions, jaw fractures, and neck and head trauma. Many of these could be avoided if athletes and sports enthusiasts used a mouth guard. Anyone participating in sports, especially contact sports, should wear protective mouth guards for safety.

Different types of mouth guards provide various advantages and degrees of protection -- from off-the-shelf to custom-fitted.

If you let good oral care habits slip away, you might be setting yourself up for some undesirable or painful events. Taking care of your teeth by brushing at least twice a day, cleaning between your teeth, avoiding smoking, and protecting yourself from injury by wearing a mouth guard does make a big difference. It matters to your mouth -- just a few minutes daily for clean teeth, fresh breath, and a magical smile!

by Brian J. Gray, DDS, MAGD, FICO

+Jim Du Molin is a leading Internet search expert helping individuals and families connect with the right dentist in their area. Visit his author page.