Dental problems in children with autism.

[HecateHarshPants]

Well. I am a shit excuse for a mother.

My children have always been very uncooperative re toothbrushing. They don't bite any more (thank god!) but they do clamp their teeth closed and my youngest in particular won't allow you to do anything and I know they do have the potential to bite me still! They won't allow flossing or interdental brushes. I have had to put them in headlocks and force their mouths open many times. But they are 11 and 13 now and they are stronger than me!

They won't cooperate at the dentists, won't even allow teeth cleaning and we finally got them transferred to the dental hospital.

So my husband took them for their appt this morning. He's just called me to say that they both need work and it will have to be under GA.

I feel utterly utterly shit that I have failed to keep their teeth clean and now they need this.

Have any of you faced this? How do you keep your children's teeth clean?

Not shit at all... So stop that right now before I kick you up the arse!

Ds is petrified of dentists and will only just about tolerate an examination provided he doesnt have to lie back . He has excellent teeth because he is so petrified of any decay. If anything , I'm told he overbrushes.

However, for the last 2 years I have been avoiding a problem he has with an adult tooth that got lost and never dropped down. So he has been left with a baby tooth which he shouldn't have as it has never got pushed out.
The dentist isn't very asd friendly... And so he has been referred to an orthadontist... But I think he will have to have GA if they want to do anything at al.l Even the performance we went through just to get an xray was pretty bad.

My current thinking is still to let sleeping dogs lie if I'm honest.. Because we have bigger fish to fry.. But the dentist doesn't seem to get this.

Lol.. Forgot it's not about me!
Have you tried mouthwashes?
Disclosing tablets?
I say these because dd ( nt) is a toothbrush dodger and disclosing tabs every now and then seem to be the only way to keep her committed.

thanks. Am trying to distract myself by posting loads of crap round the boards. My husband will be back soon with the children. He was only supposed to have a half day off. whoops. I had something I couldn't move first thing, so couldn't take them.

My youngest has that - baby teeth not coming out. He's got a row of them on both sides. Shark teeth . Apparently they have to be removed cos they can affect how the adult teeth come through. His teeth are quite wonky.

If their teeth were great like your son's I'd do the same as you! But they're in a right state. I knew they were and I still couldn't do anything. And it took AGES for the referral to come through.

Yes, they use mouthwash and they won't have the disclosing tablets but I did manage to get some paint. We call it Purple Of Doooooooom and you paint it on with a cotton bud.

oh god, I wish I knew.

dd1 is mostly cooperative, but I know deep down that she is only really getting a cursory clean. and there was a period (when she was a toddler) when they didn't get cleaned beyond the odd wipe with a clean muslin.

she needs to go to the dentist now. she seems to have chipped a (milk, thankfully) molar - the back corner has come away, and it keeps getting food stuck in there (and she mentions it hurts a bit - think more hurts due to food stuck, rather than toothache, but who knows?)

BUT, I had a baby (by c section) 2 weeks ago. I cannot drive yet. dh is at work. I cannot walk us all safely into town (and due to ridiculously low iron levels, might not actually make it even if I attempted to walk the half mile into town).

so I beat you in the shit mother stakes - I know my child needs dental treatment, and cannot manage to organise it for her.

re: the teeth cleaning, we had to work up to it (as I am sure you have done) - lots of desensitising lips and gums (dd1 cannot bear to have her lips wet/messy), and out and out bribery (not sure that offering chocolate in return for teeth cleaning is the most sensible thing I have ever done , but at least it got toothpaste onto her teeth!). oh, and i use non-flouride toothpaste, as dd1 reacts to all 'decent' toothpastes, and so even when we get her teeth clean, it's not the best clean ever anyway...

Whoa there, you are absolutely not a shit excuse for a mother. Stop that thinking now.

There is only so much you can do. You will probably have tried everything (as I have) and NOTHING works. My DS is 7 and has awful tartar, plaque, and generally bad teeth. He won't use mouthwash, disclosing tablets, open his mouth. I've tried electric toothbrushes, manual ones, coloured ones, sticker charts, counting down, counting up. He will wave a toothbrush in the general direction of his mouth and that's it.

I am sorry I don't have any answers. It is upsetting that they are going to need work done, but you have done what you can. Hugs. x

oh, re: baby teeth not coming out, and adult teeth coming through wonky etc.

dd1 at her last dentist visit (oddly she likes the dentist - she loves talking to people, so as long as she gets to ask her questions, she will submit to a cursory examination), had her adult top front teeth coming through (she is jsut 8), yet her milk top teeth hadn't fallen out, so she had a double row of teeth. the dentist said the best thing to do was leave it, and they would come out eventually (one has, 4 months later; the other hasn't yet), and her adult teeth are truly wonky. apparently they will even out once the milk teeth come out/once spacing for adult teeth is better. I am a bit worried as I have hideously wonky teeth, and hate them, and don't want dd1 to have the same, but on the side where the milk tooth has come out, it does seem to be evening up a bit (leaving dd1 more wonky'toothed than ever, as she now has big/small teetha ll jumbled up in a row along her top jaw ), so there is some hope.

Nah Hecate.. I'm in denial.. It can't be left apparently. It's sideways underneath his nostril.The x-ray was a shock.its not even above where it should be. I can't quite believe its got SO lost tbh..but it has. It wiont ever be any good.. But there is a possibility it can be a problem where it is.

I'll get my head around it eventually... I'm mad with myself for leaving it when deep down I knew from the pattern of how his teeth emerged that something wasn't right. But at the time.. I was grateful for getting him even in the chair... And that was all he ( and I ) could cope with stress wise.

You've done your best... Let yourself off the hook. We have to pick our fights ...esp true with Children with SN.

Ds also had the 2 rows shark teeth btw...
Weird!
They all came out eventually

thanks folks can always rely on you to cheer me up / give me a boot (as required )

They've both been prescribed special toothpaste - Duraphat - repeat prescription and they've been given further appointments. They took blood from them - fingertip - which I can only assume is to check blood type prior to GA? I don't know and my husband didn't ask, the big apeth.

I agree with the other posters -please stop beating yourself up!
DD is exactly the same, and has had fillings already (she's 11)

She won't let us clean her teeth (pushes hands away, turns head:etc) but is incapable of cleaning them properly herself. We just do the best we can- and that's all any of us can do.

We were told on Thursday that she needs a brace - how the hell they imagine they will get her to open her mouth for an impression, I don't know

sorry no advice but if it makes you feel slightly better, meet another shit mother!! DS had 12 teeth removed by GA a few year back and still doesn't brush!! He also has a heart condition making him at risk of endochartitis which can be fatal............it makes me ill and makes me feel even more shit!!

((((((((((((((hugs)))))))))))))))

I was moved when I read this post. I have seen my son (now 12) struggle with any and all appointments (usually medical and involving needles). He has ASD and what we have found is nothing short of a miracle. I don't know if it will work for others, but we got a small dog, a Bichon Frise. Our son and her (now she's one) have really bonded. She has a really calm temperament when we are at medical appointments and we have truly been blessed that he is allowed to bring his "skittle" to the dentist and orthodontist as an unoffocial emotional support dog. She literally sits in a cloth/nylon carrier, open on the top with his hand stroking her as she sits on his lap while dental work os done. I am so so lucky this has helped him. He does not like the work any better, but she helps him survive the "sawing", as he calls what is done to remove teeth.
If anyone has seen how many hospitals in michigan now have comfort/support dogs in their lobies, i think this is a trend. If I am stressed less too, I am better able to parent him. We really struggled with potty training in the winter and then also having a puppy with hip replacement surgery was no fun, either. All I can say is he needs her for a lot of painful life events and transitions socially. I am becoming an advocate for our dog to go more places, within reason. We had another older bichon(7) and it hasn't been easy for him to share us, but think about how much she has meant to our son. It's all worth it if you think about being a parent as God's gift to our son as opposed to the other way, the more frequent view of the perfect child as being a gift to us. I believe he is both a gift to us and we are a gift to him. We're glad to have opportunities to help him, in case anyone has more suggestions.

Have you tried the toothpaste with no flavour? Been a godsend to us

where do you get that from? what brand?

We use strawberry flavoured toothpaste from tesco

oraNurse - no flavour toothpaste, we get it from dentist

Ah thanks, I am sure there is a specific hate the taste of mint gene on their dad's side!

lucky if you still have all ten fingers if you ask me..

I may be about to lose one.