What is Restorative Dentistry?
Pediatric restorative dentistry focuses on treating and restoring the dental health of children. This can include repairing cavities, treating tooth decay and gum disease, and restoring damaged or missing teeth to improve overall oral health and function.
At The Baby Teeth Studio, our goal is to provide our little patients with high-quality dental care while ensuring a comfortable and positive dental experience.
Restorative Services
pediatric dental fillings
Fillings are used to treat cavities and prevent them from growing larger. At The Baby Teeth Studio, Dr. Jen uses gentle techniques to remove decay and a variety of materials to restore the tooth. These materials include tooth-colored composite, and resin-modified glass ionomer, which can actually help remineralize other affected demineralized teeth in the mouth even after treatment is complete. Based on your child’s unique needs, Dr. Jen will recommend the type of filling that best suits them.
pediatric dental crowns
If a tooth has been damaged or affected by more extensive decay, a crown can restore the tooth and reinforce it to preserve the root. Dr. Jen uses several types of pre-fitted pediatric dental crowns to suit your child’s oral health. Tooth-colored zirconia crowns look and feel just like a natural tooth, and are strong and durable as well, making them a great option for the front teeth, or any tooth that is visible. We also offer state-of-the-art BioFlx crowns, and standard stainless steel crowns
pediatric sedation options
We offer a variety of safe sedation options for our little patients. Sedation can help your child relax during their treatment to ensure they have a positive experience free of fear or pain. Nitrous oxide, or laughing air, is the most common sedation option, and is inhaled through a mask. The effects wear off almost immediately after the procedure, and there are minimal side effects. We also offer oral conscious sedation for certain patients who require a little more relaxation. For more complex procedures, or patients who could benefit from being asleep during treatment, we work with a board-certified anesthesiologist to provide general anesthesia in a completely safe setting. Dr. Jen will go over all of the sedation options in detail, and recommend what type, if any, is right for your child.
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Interim Therapeutic Restorations
For some patients who are very young, anxious, dental phobic, uncooperative, or those with special health care needs, traditional cavity preparation or placement of dental restorations may not be feasible and need to be postponed. Interim Therapeutic Restorations (ITR), or temporary restorations, can be used to restore, arrest, or prevent the progression of cavities without the use of local tooth anesthesia or "numbing". ITR are used to "buy time" and allow the child time to become more comfortable in the dental environment. This could be few months, a year, or the ITR could last the life of the tooth. ITR can later be replaced with more definitive restoration when the patient is able to comfortably accept dental care. Also, for patients who are awaiting sedation or anesthesia, ITRs can be used to slow cavity progression in order to avoid the need for more invasive dental treatment.
Indirect Pulp Therapy
Indirect pulp therapy (IPT) is a gentle and minimally invasive approach used to treat deep cavities near the pulp, which contains nerves and blood vessels. The treatment is designed to help maintain tooth vitality and avoid more invasive procedures. During the treatment, we'll apply a special medicament over the remaining decay closest to the pulp to help promote remineralization, arrest decay, and reduce the chances of future infection.
Pulp Therapy: Pulpotomies & Pulpectomies
The primary goal of pulp therapy is to maintain the integrity and health of the teeth and their supporting tissues of teeth affected by caries (cavities), traumatic injury, or other causes. When a cavity has progressed into the pulp of the tooth, where nerves, nutrients, and blood vessels reside, the infected pulp tissues are removed. A pulpotomy involves only the pulp tissue in the crown of the tooth, while a pulpectomy involves removing the infected pulp from both the crown and roots. The remaining pulp tissues are disinfected and treated with a long-term clinically-successful medicament that helps prevent the spread of infection. A full coverage restoration or crown is then placed to protect the tooth from fracture or future re-infection.
Extractions
We will always try to save a natural tooth before resorting to an extraction. Unfortunately sometimes a tooth is too damaged, decayed, or infected to save. We use a combination of gentle behavior management techniques, ceiling-mounted TVs and wireless headphones to provide distraction and comfort for our patients. We also offer nitrous oxide/oxygen (laughing air) and local anesthetic, or "tooth numbing," as well as sedation if necessary to alleviate any pain or anxiety, and ensure our patients remain comfortable and relaxed during the procedure. After the extraction, Dr. Jen may recommend a space maintainer to prevent teeth from shifting into the now empty space, and save this important space for the developing permanent tooth. Space maintenance can help prevent orthodontic issues later in life.
Frequently Asked Questions
