Cavities 5 year old

[G123455]

Just taken my LO to the dentist for a check up and she has 4 cavities, I feel so sick and have terrible parental guilt. She has had a lot of antibiotics, steroids and admittedly drinks fruit juices (dislikes water which I am massively pushing now) the past two years with being in and out of hospital. I phoned my LO asthma nurse who said it would have massively contributed and that some children have weaker teeth but I can’t help but feel horrible. Her teeth don’t look bad, not discoloured no brown/black but there is a hole on one of the back teeth, so worried it will get worse. We brush regularly and she takes asthma medication/inhailers regularly. My other children both have never needed any fillings. The dentist has put us for a referral to see a paediatric dentist and go from there but most likely 2 will need to be removed. Has anyone been in this situation? Any advice? Thank you

We had a similar situation with our DS5 (nearly 6). I felt like the worst mum but we have gradually sorted out the cavities one by one and now all but one have been treated. My LO has ASD so diet is an issue. One ‘hack’ was a smoothie with dinner so he would eat more variety of foods, and gummy vitamins before bed. Both likely caused this, especially the gummy vitamins as I think they would get stuck in his teeth.

All you can do is try to learn and not to blame yourself too much. I’ve learned you can’t be perfect as a mum, but only do your best. You sound like you are looking after her and trying your best. Of all the things to happen in her life, some fillings or teeth removed (especially baby teeth) will not damage her in the long run. Try not to dwell and just see what can be done better in future. The fact you posted here means you care.

You can’t change what’s done but this can be a wake up call to ensure water is the main drink moving forward and that your child has their teeth properly cleaned at least twice a day (she’s still too young to be able to clean them herself).

My child had this. ASD and I had to hold her head to clean her teeth. Had an awful appointment with a dentist who was rude to me. Felt like shit after the appointment . The dentist wouldn't have known the background. Just seeing the fillings needed. She is an adult now with lovely teeth and able to clean them herself with an electric toothbrush.

My daughter developed a cavity in one of her molars when she was 3 and had staining on two others. This was due to severe silent reflux which has gone out of control. She was refluxing and chewing on the reflux stomach contents most of the night for months. We ended up under the care of two paediatricians trying to get it managed again. It took 6 months but we got there.

We went on to 3 monthly fluoride treatments at the dentist to help reduce the damage from the acid reflux and prevent further cavities and the current cavity getting worse. We were expecting her to need 3 of her molars capped and possibly needing one of them removed. We radically changed her diet to remove all juice, dried fruits, acidic fruits and no more than 1 portion of fruit a day, only water or oat milk to drink in open cups, no straws. We moved to an pro-enamel toothpaste and put a layer of toothpaste on her molars before she went to sleep after brushing her teeth. This stopped the teeth getting worse. She is now 5 and has had a no drill filling on her cavity after it showed nonactive decay and she didn't develop any further cavities. Her reflux has stayed well managed but we still have the fluoride treatment every 4 months.

I felt awful when I was told she had a cavity. It felt like a real kick considering the battles we were having with her physical health. She was waking every 45 minutes only sleeping if I was holding her upright, doing battles with drs trying to get them to take us seriously and going though treatment options. It felt like one more thing to contend with.
I can't believe the difference 2 years has made. She now has juice maybe once a month, sweets once a week or less and free reign on the fruit bowl.

@G123455 You are now aware, that's a positive so you can now be pro-active.

There is a link to inhalers and cavities, but this is "easily" managed.

Removing fruit juice from her diet is also a very good move.

Don't castigate yourself @G123455, you now have the info you need going forward, to protect her dental health. 🌸

Some people have weaker teeth unfortunately, it isn't always diet related or hygiene related, so don't kick yourself too much. I was that child unfortunately.

Having said that, there are some things you could try to prevent or slow down issues. Limit the fruit juices to meal times and try and cut back overall on those,. If she won't have water alone, sugar free cordial.

Thank you all for the messages, I have brushed her teeth twice a day and she has lots of fruit/veg. The water is a big change that has started. Our dentist did say they wouldn’t do any fillings as she would be too young to sit still and would refer locally to a paediatric specialist. He also said she would need to have them taken out and the waiting list is up to a year on the nhs. I feel so anxious in case the cavities get worse. I know my other children have great teeth so feel somewhat not totally responsible but can’t help feel I should have been firmer with water and questioning everything now! I’ve googled lots and found that raisins are terrible she’s had raisins for years thinking they were a healthy choice.

Make sure she’s not rinsing after brushing so you’re leaving the paste on the teeth and brush before breakfast or at least 30 mins after

I would look at moving to the 6+ toothpaste (our dentist recommended this) as it has a higher fluoride content. I would ask the dentist though.

It doesn’t matter what she eats or drinks at mealtimes, it’s what’s sipped or grazed on inbetween that’s the problem, even if teeth are brushed immediately after. Each sip or bite of something sugary or starchy attacks teeth for an hour afterwards even longer if eaten or drunk just before bed. What she has at three meals a day will do no harm to her teeth.

As you have discovered it not just sweets, biscuits , cakes that are the problem but many “healthy” foods eg fruit juice, smoothies , yoghurt, dried fruits, granola bars , non dairy milks (often sweetened to make palatable), starchy foods, honey, agave syrup

Inhalers do not cause decay but dry mouth associated with asthma and their use can promote decay and some inhalers can be acidic so can cause erosion. Rinsing out with water after use helps and also helps stop opportunistic thrush infections as does use of a spacer or nebuliser.

We have moved to the 6+ our dentist advised it last week, also using floss and brushing 30 mins after food. I have a mouthwash that will use after lunch. She is a big snacker, lots of apples, oranges, raisins, crisps and carrots. I didn’t know it could cause damage and will be massively cutting down. Thank you for all of your helpful comments.

Hi, I went through this with my son was was 4.5/5 at the time. NHS identified 4 teeth that would need removed and 4 which has signs of the start of decay and since he would be put under GA for the first 4, they would just do 8!
I was absolutely horrified.
We took DS to see a private dentist who advised we only needed to remove 2 teeth and he put a metal cap on the other 2.

ds didn't need GA for the two being pulled -the dentist used a numbing gel, then the injection then whipped one out. Then we went back for a second appointment to do the other side. It was done within 5 mins and my son was absolutely chill about it all.
This was over a year ago and there's been no further issues, no new decay.

Please seek a second, private opinion!!

Check with your dentist but ours recommended going straight for "adult" toothpastes. He said the children's toothpastes are just about marketing and there's no need for them. My daughter has had adult toothpaste since 3 to ensure she always has 1450 ppb of fluoride.

It took only a minute or two longer than a regular check up for my daughter to get her filling although this didn't require any drilling so she just filled the hole with the paste as we had been able to wait until it showed no active decay (based on colour and hardness). If you are able to make the changes and keep the decay from getting worse other options might open up for you.

I agree with @Hungrycaterpillarsmummy about getting a second opinion though. We were with a private dentist first who recommended waiting to see if the cavity got worse. If it stayed small we could monitor it, if it grew but wasn't severe we could have a cap put on it and if it was severe it would need a hospital referral and removal/filling under GA. We saw a NHS dentist two months later who said it would be a case of waiting until it got bad enough for removal and doing a hospital referral as you couldn't get the caps on the NHS under 5. Then 3 months later she came back with the same treatment plan as the private dentist. The caps would have been £250+ vat with the private dentist.

This is not quite right .
You can get hall crowns on the NHS if a child is under 5 BUT it needs to be a child who can co operate as they will not place under a general anaesthetic and it also needs to be a tooth that has not yet become infected .

If a child can co operate , possibly with nitrous oxide (laughing gas) then many options are available. However because the dental team will not want to repeat a general anaesthetic then any dubious teeth , even if slightly decayed , will be removed if a general anaesthetic is necessary . This is particularly because in most areas, even if a child is in pain or a tooth is infected, waiting lists for community or paediatric dentists doing general anaesthetics can be months to years long.

Yes that is in the post that 3 months later the dentist that said we couldn't have them said we could!

I don't know what part of my post is 'not quite right" since I stayed we got crowns via private dentistry. They capped three teeth now with signs of decay (because once oxygen can't get to the decay it won't get worse or something) and didn't whip them out because my child was able to have 2 teeth removed without GA or Nitrous Oxide. He was a very timid, shy, nervy young 5yo at the time and he managed it because the Private dentist was so kind and nice and fun with him.

The NHS just wanted to go straight to whipping them out under GA. Fuck that.

Op definitely seek private advice.