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Original poster

dental advice needed pls for three year old with decay

26 replies

dinny · 17/07/2008 13:51

one of ds's back molars has some decay on it - he goes to dentist every six months and dentist is keeping eye on it till he is a bit older and he can drill without putting him off dentists for ever

we went on Tuesday and the dentist said he may try and drill it in Jan (next app)

but have just looked at it and decay has spread and think ds finds it sore - just wondered if this was usual practice or should I be getting a 2nd opinion? thanks

OP posts:
Original poster
dinny · 17/07/2008 16:37

bump

OP posts:
southeastastra · 17/07/2008 16:38

i left my sons until i thought it looked bad. got a second opinion and they whipped them straight out.

Original poster
dinny · 17/07/2008 16:39

how old was he?

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AvenaLife · 17/07/2008 16:41

I would go for a second opinion. If it is starting to decay then it shouldn't be left for 6 months as it will get alot worse without treatment. I would go back if ds is in pain as it sounds as though the decay is deep. They refer children to the hospital to have them removed where I live. They sedate some, others they have to give them a general anaesthetic so the drill won't upset them. I woul get it looked at again though.

Original poster
dinny · 17/07/2008 16:43

just boooked him in with my dentist on Tuesday... poor ds

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sarah293 · 17/07/2008 16:44

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

belgo · 17/07/2008 16:47

I would get a second opinion. It's rare for a hole to be bad enough to need drilling at this age - usually they can just put a coating on it.

Has the dentist put any sort of coating / pink filling on it?

If it's worse then that, and the child is very young, they may need sedation for treatment.

Original poster
dinny · 17/07/2008 16:52

right, managed to get appointment with my dentist tomorrow am and will see what he says

feel awful now

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Original poster
dinny · 17/07/2008 16:53

it looked quite bad this morning, maybe as if a bit has snapped off

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southeastastra · 17/07/2008 17:00

he's 6 i saw them, they were decayed right through, the dentist said it must have been making him feel a bit ill.

Original poster
dinny · 17/07/2008 17:05

did he have general or sedation?

just don't know how this tooth of ds's has got so bad, the others are all fine

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southeastastra · 17/07/2008 17:09

he was sedated at a specialist clinic

Original poster
dinny · 17/07/2008 17:14

worried now as it doesn't seem to be hurting him that it has damaged the nerve, eek

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southeastastra · 17/07/2008 17:48

doubt it would damage the nerve. see what the other dentist says.

Original poster
dinny · 17/07/2008 18:54

hope not

thanks for posting

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ComeOVeneer · 17/07/2008 19:08

If it had damaged the nerve he would be in pain. The molars don't keep the jaw shape, they maintain the space for the adult teeth to come through. If it is removed the dentist will keep an eye on the spacing and if necessary put something in to maintain the gap. A tooth that is likely to be lost in the nearish future I would keep an eye on and not necessarliy treat, but a molar isn't naturally going to fall out for many years (in a 3 year old). Also because baby teeth are much more delicate than adult teeth the decay can be a lot more rapid.

23balloons · 17/07/2008 19:12

ds1 had a similar problem with a back molar with a 'funny' groove. The dentist kept covering it but had to drill and fill recently - he is 7 nearly 8 now & has been going on since he was 3- so covering can help to preserve the tooth. I don't know how much longer it will last but they are supposed to loose them around the age of 10 or 11. You should always put the toothpaste on that tooth first and possibly use one with a bit of flouride if he spits out well.

Original poster
dinny · 17/07/2008 19:54

thanks for the posts

yes, think the dentist said ds has a funny groove which collects debris

COV, is it Ok to go for 2nd opinion? feel a bit our of order as ds's dentist is really nice and caring

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Original poster
dinny · 18/07/2008 15:48

Update - been to see my dentist this morning and he has put a temp dressing on it and is going to do a pink filling on Tuesday (says he is using a brush drill?)

he also did a fluoride treatment paste thing and says he needs one every 6 months

am SO glad I took him to get 2nd opinion

COV (or any other dentists!) - will he have an injection or doesn't cleaning it with a brush for a pink filling hurt?

thanks, Dinny

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Original poster
dinny · 18/07/2008 16:20

bumping in case I miss a dentist....

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Original poster
dinny · 18/07/2008 19:39

another try...

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23balloons · 18/07/2008 19:44

my ds didn't need an injection until the last time when it was actually hurting him and he had to have some removed. He didn't need anything for the covers.

Original poster
dinny · 18/07/2008 19:57

thanks, 23balloons, interestingly the dentist also said children's toothpaste doesn't have enough fluoride and to use small amount of adult's - never knew that...

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Original poster
dinny · 19/07/2008 10:50

COV about this am?

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Original poster
dinny · 22/07/2008 14:09

gah, ds is poorly today so had to miss appointment for pink filling with my dentist and can't get another until two weeks today (as we are away on holiday) - is it Ok to leave it that long?

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