Light filling and regular filling – which is better?

Pediatric dentistry can be considered a separate section of modern dental practice, because due to the structural features, the treatment of baby teeth is somewhat different from the treatment of permanent teeth. Unfortunately, many parents are still convinced that baby teeth do not need dental care - after all, they will soon break down and fall out anyway. Therefore, children are not taken to the dentist very often, and if they are taken to the doctor, it is with advanced diseases and multiple problems.

In fact, dental treatment should be carried out at any age, and the sooner you consult a doctor with a problem, the higher the likelihood of getting rid of it quickly and without any complications. If a child has bad baby teeth, this will inevitably affect the health of his permanent ones - this is what parents need to remember when they want to “pity” the baby and not take him to an appointment with the “evil dentist.”

Gum inflammation

The most common inflammatory gum diseases in children are stomatitis and gingivitis. Stomatitis, or, as it is usually called, thrush, is an infectious inflammatory process provoked by fungi of the genus Candida. Treatment is antifungal and anti-inflammatory therapy, always carried out under the supervision and recommendations of a dentist. Self-medication can be dangerous, as some children may have allergic reactions to certain medications or antiseptics.

Gingivitis most often occurs due to plaque on baby teeth and insufficient general hygiene, but the reasons for their development can also be trauma to the gums during teething or other injuries, untreated caries. With this problem, you also need to contact a doctor, who will select the optimal treatment regimen and prevent gingivitis from developing into childhood periodontitis.

Caries, pulpitis and periodontitis of primary teeth in children

Milk teeth have thinner enamel and dentin layers than permanent teeth, they have a larger pulp chamber and, therefore, infection spreads faster to the pulp. They are more often susceptible to carious lesions - and not least because of night feeding or the habit of drinking drinks from a bottle at night (mostly sweet or sweetened - tea, juices).

In addition, caries is often provoked by plaque on baby teeth, which forms faster than in adults, and which not all parents are in a hurry to remove. Many people begin brushing their children’s teeth at a more or less conscious age, while a child should be taught hygiene and regularly remove plaque from the moment the first teeth erupt, that is, from about six months of age. Also, the cause of diseases of the dental system can be an insufficient amount of solid food in the baby’s diet, since chewing solid food helps to clean the dental surfaces themselves.

The child's nutritional habits, lack of hygiene, and too thin enamel layer provoke a phenomenon called circular caries of baby teeth - carious lesions spread over the entire tooth surface, as if encircling the crown.

Caries quickly turns into pulpitis - an inflammatory lesion of the dental pulp. Most often, a doctor is consulted precisely at this stage of the infectious process, ignoring the initial stages of damage to dental tissues. Pulpitis, in turn, provokes periodontitis of primary teeth in children - inflammation of the periodontal tissues near the tips of the tooth roots. This condition is usually accompanied by severe pain, severe swelling of the affected area, and often an increase in body temperature.

Colored fillings for children

Everyone knows about the need for preventive visits to the dentist, but not only children, but also adults themselves are often afraid to cross the threshold of the clinic, having had negative dental experiences in childhood. But the longer you postpone the visit, the larger the problem and the longer the treatment may be.

First meeting with the dentist

It is recommended to introduce the baby to the doctor as early as possible, explain that the doctor cares about his teeth and is ready to tell him how to care for them. If you bring a child to the dental office for the first time with already advanced caries and acute pain, then such an appointment will definitely not leave a pleasant impression. In the future, dental phobia (fear of treatment at the dentist) and a negative attitude even towards preventive measures may develop. Parents should understand that modern equipment and materials make treatment almost painless, and pleasant little things can distract and even please the child. This approach will be the key to a beautiful and healthy smile, as well as a positive attitude towards visiting the dental clinic.

Why do you need to treat baby teeth?

It is a common belief that baby teeth do not need treatment, since they will fall out sooner or later anyway. But this idea of ​​parents is wrong. And there are several reasons for this:

• milk teeth, like permanent teeth, are designed to perform a chewing function and provide a uniform load: their absence can negatively affect the digestion process, speech development or diction;
• early loss or removal of an affected tooth can adversely affect the bite in the future, which means that orthodontic treatment will be required;
• the roots of baby teeth come into contact with the rudiments of permanent teeth, so diseases of the former can affect the latter.

Only regular preventive measures and timely treatment of diseases will help to avoid these problems. It is necessary to see a doctor urgently if you notice dark or whitish spots on the teeth, bad breath, swelling of the cheek, or if the child himself complains of pain or discomfort.

What are colored fillings

Even if a child is calm about visiting a dental clinic, he is unlikely to enjoy the treatment process itself. In this regard, specialists from different countries are constantly trying to come up with new ways to make the procedure more comfortable and even positive. One of the most successful solutions is the use of colored fillings. Such material can interest a small patient and even improve his mood.

For adults, this idea may seem a little absurd, because we all strive to hide the defect that has appeared as much as possible, and choose a filling that matches the color of our own tooth. Children see this as a game: colorful spots on their teeth seem fun to them and express their individuality and preferences. In addition, the process of choosing a color can distract the child from unpleasant manipulations. And how great it is to then show off to your friends such a “new thing” and the fact that it was not scary at all! The color scheme will also please young fashionistas. There are usually seven bright colors in a dentist's arsenal: orange, blue, pink, yellow, green, silver and gold. If you plan to treat several teeth at once, you can collect a small collection.

Benefits of installing a colored filling

Compomer is used to make colored fillings. It consists of glass ionomer and photopolymer. The first helps saturate the enamel with fluoride and gives the filling high adhesion, the second provides strength to the material.

The use of colored fillings in pediatric dentistry has a number of advantages:

• they are bright and cheerful, creating a positive impression on the child;
• the material from which colored fillings are made ensures quick filling from capsules;
• long service life - up to 3 years.

But still, the main advantage of colored fillings is the positive perception of the child. Children cease to be afraid of the dentist and evaluate the treatment itself as the acquisition of a new piece of jewelry. In addition, they increase interest in the process of dental care, because the child wants to keep his colored fillings for as long as possible.

How does the filling installation process work?

The whole point of filling, both when using regular and colored fillings, comes down to removing damaged tissues and replacing them with artificial ones. In any case, one goal is pursued - to preserve the functionality and aesthetics of a baby tooth for a longer period.

The filling process takes place in several stages:

1. The area around the tooth is numbed. To do this, the doctor uses a suitable anesthetic with a precisely calculated dosage. If a child is afraid to give an injection right away, he is offered to anoint his gums with “fruit chill”.
2. Then the dental cavity is thoroughly cleaned of damaged tissue. For these purposes, a drill, laser or sandblasting tools are used.
3. During the treatment process, it is important to check the condition of the pulp. If it is not damaged, then disinfection is carried out. If the pulp is inflamed, a decision is made to remove it.
4. After the doctor makes sure that the caries has been removed, the tooth cavity is cleaned of bacteria. At this stage, a special gasket is also installed that will protect the nerve from the applied filling material.
5. Finally, the filling itself is carried out with the material of the selected color. It is applied in even layers. To make the filling hard, it is exposed to a special light. After this, polishing and grinding are carried out.

Caring for fillings on baby teeth

After installing a colored filling on a baby tooth, you need to follow some of the doctor’s recommendations. This will help the material harden properly and serve its little owner longer. It is also important to tell your child what not to do so as not to damage the filling.

General recommendations for caring for fillings include the following:

• In the first days after filling, you should avoid eating cold or hot food or drinks. It can negatively affect the binding of dental tissues and filling material, i.e., worsen adhesion;
• in the future, it is recommended to minimize the consumption of hard and sticky foods that can damage the filling itself and the tooth;
• In the first time after treatment, you need to carefully monitor the condition of the child’s oral cavity. If unpleasant symptoms appear (pain, deformation of the filling, swelling of the gums, etc.), you should immediately consult a specialist;
• The placement of your first filling should be an important signal that you need to pay more attention to your oral hygiene. It is important to teach your child how to brush their teeth correctly, tell them about the need to rinse their mouth after eating, and you should also consult with your dentist about choosing the right toothpaste;
• Although the filling material is highly durable, it is still susceptible to the negative effects produced by sour and sweet foods. Therefore, it is recommended to reduce their amount in the child’s diet, but vegetables and protein foods should be added to the menu;
• After fillings are installed, it is recommended to visit a pediatric dentist approximately once every 3 months to monitor the condition of the filled teeth and promptly identify possible defects.

Our offer

Do you need dental treatment for your child? Do you want the process not to cause him fear and unpleasant impressions? Sign up for the Martinka clinic. We employ professional dentists who know how to approach a child. The cost of installing colored fillings for children starts from 1,650 rubles. If you would like to learn more about our services and make an appointment, please call the phone number listed above.

Treatment of baby teeth

At the initial stages, caries is treated without tissue preparation - remineralization of the enamel, as well as modern Icon technology, which allows filling without drilling, easily cope with carious lesions of the enamel layer. In later stages, when the dentinal layer is affected, as well as in the case of pulpitis and periodontitis, treatment of baby teeth with tissue preparation will be required. You should not be afraid of such procedures - modern methods of anesthesia allow them to be carried out completely painlessly and comfortably for a small patient. In addition, the anesthetics used are harmless, with a minimum concentration of the active substance. And the site of the upcoming injection itself is numbed by applying a special gel or spray (application anesthesia).

Experienced dentists try to carry out treatment quickly so that the child does not have time to get tired and capricious. If a child has bad baby teeth and a large amount of work is required, it is divided into several stages. It also happens that the child does not want to contact the doctor, is too afraid of treatment, or the volume of manipulation is too large and serious - in such a situation, it is possible to carry out therapy under anesthesia or with intravenous sedation (with a preliminary examination).

In case of pulpitis, the root canals are filled with special pastes that dissolve simultaneously with the “milky” root, so there is no chance that the medicinal material will remain in the tooth socket and will prevent the new tooth from growing properly.

Filling for a child - high quality, pain-free and at an affordable price

Most parents are reluctant to visit the dental office with their children. They perceive this as stress for the child, since they clearly remember their own childhood. In their memories, the dentist is a doctor with a stern look, cold hands and an arsenal of instruments for torture. Fortunately, pediatric dentistry looks very different today.

At the Natadent dental clinic, dental fillings for children are performed by qualified doctors, whose professionalism is manifested not only in high-quality treatment, but also in the ability to find an approach to young patients.

The following features of our clinic help us make treatment comfortable for the child:

A children's playroom where the doctor gets to know each other and spends time in a playful way with the baby before the appointment.

• friendly atmosphere in the office, preliminary communication and explanation of all the intricacies of treatment.
• use of modern tools and materials;
• local anesthesia, sedation and general anesthesia (if necessary);
• colored fillings and other playful ways to motivate a child;
• gifts after each reception
• cartoons during treatment

If you want your child to have healthy teeth and not be afraid of the dental office in the future, bring him to the Natadent clinic. Our doctors perform dental fillings for children quickly, efficiently and in a fun way. Thanks to this, the child will not be afraid and will remember that dental treatment is a short, painless and very important procedure.

Restoration of baby teeth

If a child’s baby tooth breaks off or if the dental crown is severely damaged by caries, restoration is carried out. However, if for adult patients one of the most important aspects during restoration is aesthetics, then for children functionality is much more important. Therefore, restorative filling materials are always selected taking into account the patient’s age - for children, durability and impeccable aesthetics are not so important, a good marginal fit of the fillings and the preservation of dental tissues are much more important. Filling materials that are too strong can put pressure on dental tissues and contribute to their destruction, and therefore dentists choose materials that will recreate and maintain the integrity of the dental crown until the moment of natural tooth loss.

Dental treatment under anesthesia

General anesthesia is an effective way to make the treatment process as comfortable as possible. The child simply falls asleep and wakes up with healthy teeth. Thanks to this, the next time he will not feel afraid before visiting the dental office.

Dental filling for children under anesthesia is preferable in the following situations:

• treatment will last more than an hour;
• it is assumed that the procedure will be painful (when treating distant teeth or advanced caries);
• you need to fill several teeth at a time;
• local anesthesia is not possible (for example, due to allergies);
• it is not possible to place a filling on the child, since any actions in the oral cavity cause a gag reflex;
• unable to overcome panic fear of treatment.

The Natadent dental clinic employs qualified anesthesiologists who will calculate the dose of the drug with maximum accuracy. Thanks to this, the child will wake up immediately after the procedure, and drowsiness will pass very quickly. Modern drugs are completely safe and are used in the treatment of children over 3 years old, so any worries about the consequences are unnecessary.

Removal of baby teeth in children

Removal of baby teeth in children is carried out only for specific indications or in the case when the tooth is ready to fall out on its own and just needs a little “help”. If there is a choice - to remove or treat, a competent dentist will always advise treatment, since the early loss of baby teeth leads to a number of serious disorders of the dental system, including the appearance of permanent bite defects.

Extraction operations should be carried out exclusively in the dentist’s office - attempts to remove teeth at home can lead to injury to soft tissues, infection of the socket, injury to the rudiment of a permanent dental unit, etc. The doctor will perform the extraction under local anesthesia quickly, competently and completely painlessly.

Features of filling children's temporary teeth

Milk teeth are not much different in structure from molars. They have a crown, a root with pulp, nerves and vessels, and a neck. The roots of the primary dentition are reabsorbed by the time the bite changes, making way for the root row to erupt. For this reason, filling the roots of baby teeth has its own characteristics. The main rule is to make a filling from an absorbable material. This is necessary so that it does not interfere with the eruption of the molar. The most commonly used material is zinc oxide eugenol cement. Gutta-percha is used in treatment only in cases of absence of a permanent tooth germ.

Also, when filling the canals of baby teeth, anesthetics cannot be used, since it is necessary to monitor the achievement of the apical foramen. The filling material is isolated with a glass ionomer substance and subsequent restoration work is carried out. In order for the treatment of childhood caries to be as painless as possible, the procedure must be performed by experienced specialists, such as the doctors of our Aesculapius business class clinic. We are well versed in the peculiarities of the structure of the children's oral cavity and can cope with cases of any complexity. At the same time, our dental center provides excellent service conditions for both children and teenagers.

What to do if baby teeth grow crookedly?

If parents notice that their child’s baby teeth are growing crookedly - for example, there is crowding or improper occlusion - this is a reason for a mandatory consultation with a pediatric orthodontist. It happens that due to anomalies of the facial skeleton (in particular, improper development of the jaws), defects are noticeable even with a primary bite, and with a permanent bite they will persist and worsen.

Therefore, it is recommended to show the child to an orthodontist from the age of three to determine whether there is pathology and find methods for its correction. There are malocclusions that are easily corrected at an early age and extremely difficult to correct in adults.

Types of light seals

Some sources indicate that only anterior teeth can be restored using light-curing composite fillings, but this is incorrect information. Today, such filling is successfully used in all departments, except for the most inaccessible places (for example, “wisdom teeth”). All types of light fillings differ in the composition of the filler, which determines their characteristics.

How to protect baby teeth from caries?

Prevention is the best way to cope with any disease. Therefore, those parents who care about the health of their children should definitely think about caries prevention. How to protect baby teeth from caries? The recommendations of experts in this matter are as follows:

• The correct diet for the mother during pregnancy is with a sufficient amount of foods containing calcium, fluorine and phosphorus: cottage cheese, beef and beef liver, sea fish, nuts, fruits and vegetables, cereal porridges.
• Compliance with hygiene standards: daily brushing from the moment the first teeth appear, first with a cotton or gauze swab with boiled water, then with special baby brushes and pastes. Plaque on baby teeth should be removed promptly and thoroughly.
• A healthy diet for a child: as little fast carbohydrates, carbonated drinks, sweets as possible, more fruits and vegetables, cereals, and dairy products.
• Timely visits to the dentist for preventive examinations (at least once every six months).

It is important that parents develop a conscious attitude towards the health of their children's teeth and oral cavity in general. A timely visit to the dentist in case of any identified problems, as well as for regular medical examinations, will help maintain the health of the child’s dental system – and therefore the digestive system too.

Diseases that can be treated with dental fillings

Tooth decay is a major problem that can be solved with dental fillings. However, caries is a slow and irreversible process that affects the tooth enamel, cavity and bone of the tooth.

The main reasons for its development are:

• cariogenic bacteria that take part in the formation of dental plaque. It is dental plaque that contributes to the rapid development of caries, since it contains a number of acids that are dangerous to tooth enamel, such as lactic, formic, propionic and butyric.
• fermentable carbohydrates (fermentation of carbohydrates is carried out with the help of bacteria that fill the oral cavity, as a result of which the same dental plaque is formed, containing acids that change the pH balance and contribute to the destruction of enamel).

Primary caries is characterized by the formation of a chalk spot, which subsequently transforms into a carious cavity. In general, this disease is treatable at any stage. At the same time, the only effective method of treating caries of any severity is dental filling.

However, when entrusting yourself to the hands of a dentist, it is worth remembering that a poor-quality filling or unscrupulous filling of a carious cavity often becomes the cause of further development of caries, which can be accompanied by complications. The most painful of them are pulpitis and periodontitis.

The specialists of the Nutcracker family dental clinic are doctors of the highest category and have many years of experience in dental treatment. In addition, when you contact us for dental fillings, you receive a one-year guarantee on each filling!