 | Dr. Gina Pinamonti is an orthodontist in Pittsburg, KS. practicing since 1998. She is a graduate of Pittsburg State University. She completed her dental training at the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Dentistry graduating with honors. She completed her Orthodontic and Dentofacial Orthopedic residency in 1998 from UMKC as well. Dr. Pinamonti is a member of the ADA, American Association of Orthodontists, Kansas Dental Association and the vice president of the Kansas Association of Orthodontists. For more information please call 620-231-6910 or visit www.smileoutloud.com. |
Orthodontics
1969-12-31 18:00:00
Pulling baby teeth
Question: My child has a cavity in a back baby tooth and my dentist wants to fill it. He will lose it anyway so what is the harm in just pulling it?
Answer: The harm of early extraction or pulling of a back baby tooth will result in crowding if the permanent tooth is not close to erupting. Many times baby teeth will need to be pulled for various reasons. When those baby teeth are in the back, a space maintainer will need to be placed. The space maintainer will hold the space the baby tooth was holding. The primary teeth are very important even though they will be replaced by adult teeth. The baby teeth need to be functional for some time because they are replaced slowly, from about six years of age to the early teens. There are 20 baby or primary teeth that will be replaced by adult teeth. These primary teeth are place holders for the permanent teeth underneath them. If the primary teeth are lost early or if they have big cavities, then the neighboring teeth will drift into the space created by the lost tooth structure and crowd out the underlying permanent tooth as shown in the photographs below.
Fixing this crowding problem could require extensive orthodontic treatment with braces and/or removal of the blocked permanent adult tooth. The unwanted movement can be prevented by placing a space maintainer immediately after the removal of the baby tooth. As illustrated in the photographs below, the space maintainer will hold the space until the permanent tooth is in the mouth.
The easiest way to keep your child’s mouth healthy and prevent cavities from happening is to make brushing fun and for the adult to brush the child’s teeth regularly until the dentist says they are capable to keep their mouth cavity free. From an early age make it a point each day to have your children see you brushing your teeth and enjoying it. Make positive remarks to your reflection in the mirror, not to your children, as you inspect your work. Comment on how nice your mouth tastes after brushing and how great your gums feel after flossing. Remark that your mouth is the gateway to the rest of your body and if you don’t keep your mouth healthy how can anything else be healthy? Allow your kids to catch you being a good brusher and flosser. Remember responsibility cannot be taught, it must be caught. Your children already know how great you are. Let them see what great pride you take in your mouth and they will want to be just like you. Then ask them to show you their brushing skills. Ask them if they can see well enough in the mirror to inspect their own teeth just like you do. Have them open their mouth as wide as possible and check for plaque. Call plaque “Cavity Bugs” or some other catchy name you can come up with. Make a big deal about brushing the Cavity Bugs away and how glad you are that you were able to get them off before they make a hole in the tooth. In the photo below you will see a pretty, clean smile, but when the child opens you will see why brushing and flossing is so important. Cavities have been growing rampantly and the child will not have any idea that is not normal. These baby teeth will need to be filled if possible or removed. If they are removed then a space maintainer will be needed. Most importantly the child will need help with flossing to keep this from happening again on the permanent adult teeth.
In the x-ray image you will see the adult teeth that will replace the baby teeth. This is the x-ray of the child above. You can see the dark areas that occur with cavities and the crowding that has resulted in the space lost with the loss of tooth structure. It is very important to have your children see the dentist every six months and have radiographs taken yearly to check between the teeth to prevent the spread of cavities.
Dr. Gina Pinamonti is an orthodontist in Pittsburg, KS. practicing since 1998. She is a graduate of Pittsburg State University. She completed her dental training at the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Dentistry graduating with honors. She completed her Orthodontic and Dentofacial Orthopedic residency in 1998 from UMKC as well. Dr. Pinamonti is a member of the ADA, American Association of Orthodontists, Kansas Dental Association and the vice president of the Kansas Association of Orthodontists. For more information please call 620-231-6910 or visit www.smileoutloud.com.
