Saturday, July 25, 2009

Baby teeth extraction?

My son is 6 years old. His bottom central inscisor teeth are a little loose. I took him to the dentist today for a checkup and his permanent teeth are already growing in behind them. They are through the skin already.The dentist said give it two weeks and see if he can wiggle them and get them out. His permanent teeth that are growing in are so wide that the bottom lateral incisor teeth are in the way. He suggested pulling out them out to make room for the new teeth. He said if they were not taken out that his teeth would grow in crooked and crowd the other teeth which would increase his chance out cavities because they would be basically right on each other. I am a little worried about him pullung teeth before they are ready to come out and the pain that my son would experience afterwards. Has anyone done this for their child or had personal experience with this. Please tell me good and bad. Any advice is helpful.

Baby teeth extraction?
1. It is normal for the lower front adult teeth to come up behind the baby teeth and then push forward over time. There is no need to wiggle them, it will happen gradually but surely.


2. It is normal for there to be insufficient space for the adult incisors. You should NOT take out the baby laterals to make room. This only leaves LESS room for the adult laterals, and compounds the problem at a later date. It is far better to allow the adult teeth come in even if they are crooked, than to risk impaction of the adult teeth.


3. These are adult teeth coming into a child's mouth. That is one of the reasons why there is not enough room at present. As your child grows, their jaw will widen, and there will be more space.


4. Also, the combined width of the lower baby canine and molars is about 2.5mm greater than the adult teeth that will replace them. Odd, isn't it? This will mean a gain of 2.5 mm when those back baby teeth fall out between 10-13 years old. In the top jaw it is about 1.5mm gain. So this will also help the front teeth spread out.


5. These reasons are why it is uncommon to do orthodontic treatment to children with baby teeth except in special circumstances. Some of these apparent crowding issues may self-resolve as your child gets older. You really won't know their degree of crowding (if any) until all baby teeth have fallen out.


6. The chances of cavities in front adult incisors is infinitesimal as long as you are doing routine hygiene and diet.


7. If you are still unsure, consult an orthodontist. DON'T have the baby laterals or baby canines removed.


8. Change dentists.
Reply:My mum had to have a dentist pull one of her teeth out. Some chemicals were injected so that she could not feel the pain as the tooth was being pulled. She felt nothing but later a minor after-math of pain was present. So it wasn't too bad, but if you choose not to pull them your son can always have braces. I used to have them. Hated them, but people are different. Your son may like braces. Would you want him to have braces in the distant future?
Reply:Normally, even if the teeth erupt crooked, as long as the baby teeth don't set in the way for months, the teeth will still straighten once the baby teeth are lost. Adult teeth will often move foward after baby teeth are lost. Normally, baby teeth only need to be removed if the adult teeth are already through the skin and causing movement of adult teeth with no near sight of loss of the baby teeth. The only thing crowding will cause if possibly a need for braces if they do not straighten themselves out. In general, don't worry, let the adult teeth push through some more and the baby teeth will probably fall out, especially if they are already loose, just keep him wiggling them. If the adult teeth come in and the baby teeth set in for over 1 month, then take him to have the baby teeth out. These teeth are normally not the ones that make the difference on needing braces, it is normally the ones that come in later. These teeth will normally move quite a bit after the baby teeth are lost. Unless, absolutely necessary, I would avoid an extraction unless needed b/c even though it is simple, it is better to wait as long as possible before beginning work on children b/c they understand it better and are less scared.



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