Does My Child Need a Filling or a Crown?
Did you know that of U.S. children have had at least one cavity by age five? , also known as dental caries, are little holes in your teeth caused by tooth decay. The best practice is to never ignore them and visit our Hudsonville pediatric dentist for treatment sooner than later.
If your child does develop a cavity, you may be wondering what that treatment looks like exactly. Does your child need a silver or tooth-colored filling? Would a dental crown work better? Does it matter if the cavity is in a baby tooth instead of a permanent one?
At Hudsonville Dental Kids, our pediatric dentists will examine your child’s cavity and help you determine which procedure is right for your child.
Here’s what you need to know about cavity treatment for kids.
Common Types of Fillings for Children
Typically, we recommend tooth fillings for children with small cavities. Getting a filling is a safe, standard dental procedure that will restore your child’s tooth and prevent further tooth decay.
Our dentist offers two different kinds of fillings: silver (metal amalgam) fillings and white (composite resin) fillings. Both work well to restore teeth, but you may want to opt for a white filling if your child’s cavity is in a permanent tooth or in a tooth that can be seen when they smile or laugh.
White fillings match the color of your child’s tooth enamel, so no one can tell they’ve had work done.
Do Baby Teeth Really Need Fillings?
If your child’s baby tooth will fall out eventually, why fill a cavity in a non-permanent tooth? It’s a reasonable question. However, there’s a good reason to fill in baby teeth that are suffering from tooth decay: The longer early childhood cavities are left untreated, the more difficult they are to fix.
Untreated childhood cavities can result in bigger oral health problems that lead to more complicated (and more expensive) dental procedures. Pain from cavities can also affect your child’s growth and development, causing problems with eating or speaking. Additionally, baby teeth hold space in your child’s jaw for their adult teeth; decaying baby teeth can negatively affect how your child’s permanent teeth come in.
As you can see, fillings are necessary for , even when those cavities are in baby teeth. Fortunately, silver fillings work just as well as white fillings, but they tend to cost less and are easier to apply. Since your child’s baby tooth isn’t permanent anyway, a silver filling is a cost-effective choice for stopping tooth decay.
Dental Crowns for Children
If your child has a large cavity or a cracked tooth, a pediatric dental crown may be the best option.
Dental crowns are tooth-shaped caps that fit on top of your child’s existing tooth to restore its strength and functionality. Typically, we place crowns to reinforce a permanent tooth, although a baby tooth may need one in certain circumstances.
We offer both stainless steel and white dental crowns. Just like with fillings, white crowns are a great option for permanent and/or visible teeth because they match your child’s tooth enamel.
Protect Your Child’s Smile
Whether your child needs a dental filling or a dental crown, our pediatric dentist in Hudsonville, MI, is here to help. Call Hudsonville Dental Kids today at (616) 209-4039 to schedule an appointment.
This blog post has been updated.
