To be absolutely terrified

[loveyoutothemoonandback86]

My daughter has just turned 2 and the dentist have told me he has to have his top 4 teeth removed we are currently waiting an appointment. I'm absolutely terrified. I don't understand why but his teeth have been quite bad for a while even though I've Ben watching his diet and brush his teeth although he screams the house down. I had 3 other children with the same diet but they have perfect teeth.
Anyway, I've been told they will do all 4 at the same tome
As they don't like putting kids that age under general anaesthetic more than once if that can help it.
Had anyone had a similar experience? Any advice ? I feel so guilty and I'm so worried and the thought of him
Not having those teeth until he's around 6 upsets me so much .
Any advice appreciated.
Thanks

Get a second opinion before you do this. Are they visibly rotted?

I would get second opinion as well. Unless they are really bad and have potential causing infection i would reconsider removing them. I read in can affect the bite and they way the permanent ones come out.
Get your baby seen by a few specialists before going ahead with this.

Try not to feel bad about it. There is absolutely no point.
You are doing all the right things.

I have four children, all fed exactly the same diet.
Two of them have excellent teeth (eldest and youngest).
The two middle ones both had milk teeth extractions.

All had very limited sugar in their diets, but the dentist told me my downfall was giving them fruit.
I was thinking "five a day", but unfortunately wasn't clued up at that stage about the natural sugars in fruit.

As regards having the top front teeth missing, this unfortunately happened to my 3rd child. He fell onto the metal bar of a toddler trampoline when he was just two and knocked his teeth up into his gum. Thankfully his second teeth came through perfect!

I would also get a second opinion, just for peace of mind.

I know that sometimes, if a baby is ill whilst their teeth are being developed/coming through, then they can come through partially complete or weaker which makes them more prone to decay. My son has two particularly developed molars which coincided with illness and both came through at the same time. Dummies, fruit and fruitjuice can also cause problems.

Partially, not particularly. Damn autocorrect!

Aw OP I do hope others who’ve experienced it are putting your mind at rest a little. It sounds like it’s nothing to do with diet or your brushing techniques so please don’t feel guilty.

I have a wisdom tooth that came in (in my 30s) completely black as it has no enamel. It’s just a strange tooth. I have zero fillings so this one is obvs a rogue.

Best wishes to you.

DS had to have two back teeth removed under GA when he was four - the guilt I felt was utterly horrendous. But as many PPs have said, it was just down to dodgy enamel (and quite possibly milk pooling) and he's had no problems since.

The hospital were utterly brilliant with him, put him completely at ease, he thought it was a great adventure! I was in flitters when he went under though. It's very, very sudden, seeing someone have a GA and your automatic instinct is to think there's something wrong. DS was sitting up laughing, trying to grab the bubbles the team were blowing at him (did I mention they were brilliant?) and then he just slumped. I burst into tears, and a nurse gave me a hug.

He was out of theatre in less than 30 minutes, and bouncing on the bed within an hour. Obviously everyone has different experiences, but don't beat yourself up, or worry too much. The staff will be very experienced.

My middle child had to have a few bottom teeth taken out at a young age, can’t remember exactly when. I was told they were damaged due to him having antibiotics at a very young age for an ear infection. They said his adult teeth may not come through straight but in fact they were perfect. My son happily ate a McDonald’s not long afterwards. Soft, mushy food! The worst bit was holding his hand as he counted backwards and lost consciousness.

My daughter had a nasty accident at 16 months old and knocked her front two teeth out.. it took a while to get used to how different she looked because she was just a baby but she’s 10 now and has beautiful teeth.. let them guide you, if they’re decayed badly they will have to be removed but you can ask for a second opinion. Try not to feel guilty... one of my dc has had 3 fillings, the older one none. Just one of those things... x

If you looked after them properly it’s probably hyperplasia, where the enamel doesn’t form properly on the teeth.

DS2 had to have 4 teeth out at the same age. It turned out that it was due to him having to have an inhaler/nebuliser from being about 10 months old. The teeth that came out were exactly where the enhaler/medication hit in his mouth each time he used the inhaler.

My youngest had 4 teeth out. She wouldn’t open her mouth for the dentist when she was 2 but I was concerned her teeth looked bad. The dentist was always saying ‘never mind I’ll have a look next time. She opened her mouth when she 3. The dentist was horrified and said some would need to be removed. We then went to appointment after appointment at one sort of dentist or another with each saying the same thing. I don’t know why they did that. She had them out on her first day in reception at hospital. It went fine. She is 12 now and will need a brace when her last baby tooth comes out as her teeth are a mess. The adult teeth haven’t been coming down in the correct place. Sorry to add to your woe. I felt so bad but there is nothing you can do. We think it was packets of raisins that did the damage.

Re the second opinion. When your DS is referred, the assessing dentist will do their own examination & won't just extract teeth if they don't agree with the referrer.
If your DS is in pain or there is any sign of infection, these are definite indications for extraction.
If this affects just the Upper front 4 deciduous incisors, 99 times out of 100, this is due to bottle caries. Has your dentist done dietary analysis ?

You can get a plastic seal painted onto their teeth if they seem particularly prone to decay.

Thank you to everyone for putting my mind at ease. He only drinks water and was breastfed. I will ask for a second opinion but my the dentist did say when his hospital referral comes through they will decide ultimately if and how many will come out but she thinks the top 4 will. He didn't have any antibiotics at a baby.

@Goatinthegarden the dentist in
Passing did mention something about it could be acidity in the saliva but didn't elaborate. I will get a second opinion.

I still blame my childminder for this. My daughter had to have a cap thing on her back tooth when she was about three. Childminder was supposed to brush her teeth afterwards. Child was always fine brushing in evening. Now realised my daughter was only brushing in evening. Felt so guilty. No juice or fizzy drinks here. Dentist said acidic fruit and yoghurt probably. So things we are supposed to give ...

@RedCowboyBoots I didn't know about this procedure I will ask the dentist Thanks

After breakfast ffs

My daughter was given a cap rather than an extraction if that is possible?

My DS had to have 6 teeth out under GA when he was little. I was so upset, but got to the hospital to find his friend, our neighbour was in for exactly the same thing. I was good friends with his parents but they had not told me and I had not told them!

It is probably more common than we realise. I did not have a problem with my girls though! I have no idea why he did!

You can get a plastic seal painted onto their teeth if they seem particularly prone to decay.
^ This is fissure sealing, and is only possible in teeth with fissures-molars& premolars. Upper deciduous incisors don't have fissures.
See what the hospital dentist says. If there isn't any pain or infection, extractions may not be warranted.
There is evidence to link extended breastfeeding to caries, sorry to say. Teeth are a definite design fault.

4 teeth out at the front does sound like bottle caries to me, what about liquid yoghurts? Things like that

It's very unusual for hypoplasia to be the front 4 teeth, and baby teeth too. It would have to be something in pregnancy I would think not as a child and the dentist would be able to tell normally. There are other conditions that cause weak enamel but the dentist again would be able to tell.

In almost all cases decay in children is diet and oral hygiene, rarely hypoplasia however this is usually molars.

I'm not saying this to be a dick but 4 teeth out at 2 is quite extreme, and whilst this can't be undone and your DC will be absolutely fine there's no point just saying "it's probably hypoplasia". I would look really closely at his diet. At 2 it can be a real challenge to brush their teeth well, but obviously try your absolute best, twice a day egg making sure to remove all plaque as best you can. Minimising sugar in diet will help. So only at mealtimes, no sugary snacks including yoghurts, juice, dried fruit etc. Even if your child is more prone to decay it's just going to have to be more care to their teeth

Your DC will be absolutely fine, the hospital won't take out teeth if not necessary however they do have to remove any teeth with active decay to prevent more GAs. He will manage fine and his adult teeth will be through before you know it

Theres a really good helpline OP - I've used them before, they can talk things through so you are more informed when you go to the referral (is it to a dental consultant?):

www.dentalhealth.org/dental-helpline

Find out who you have been referred to so you can discuss this when you call.

I had all my back teeth out just before I was 2 (1960s). I had all my adult teeth before I was 7. I have incredibly soft teeth and unusually thick saliva, both of which combine to mean that until very recently I always needed fillings. It had literally only been the last 3 years that I have had fewer problems with my teeth. You DC might have something similar. One of my DC has good, strong teeth; the other has horrible teeth because of health reasons. My DF had a full set of dentures before he was 20. Sometimes it is genetic. Sometimes its just bad luck.

It would be worth getting a different dentist to have a look and see what they say. But if the teeth are bad, they are better out than in when baby teeth.