Petite Info

Emergency information

  1. Give your child paracetamol as you would for fever if he/she is not allergic to it
  2. Visit a dentist as soon as possible, even if the pain subsides the following day
  1. The most common reason is gum infection. Mild gum infection is also normally not painful. Usually the bleeding will stop after two or three days of thorough brushing .
  2. However, if the bleeding continues and the area is painful, it would be advisable to visit a dentist as soon as possible.
  1. Give your child paracetamol for pain relieve if he/she is not allergic to it.
  2. Place a cold towel or even a bag of frozen peas over the swelling.
  3. It is very important to see a dentist as soon as possible.
  1. First make sure your child is not injured elsewhere, especially the head area.
  2. Find the tooth ( To bring along for your visit )
  3. See a dentist as soon as possible.
  1. First make sure your child is not injured elsewhere, especially the head area.
  2. Find the tooth, and hold the tooth at the “head/crown” part of the tooth, DO NOT HOLD THE “LEG/ROOT”, and DO NOT SCRUB THE TOOTH.
  3. If the tooth is not tooth dirty, gently rinse the tooth under running water and then push it back into the “hole/socket”. The faster the tooth gets back into the socket, the better the chance of your child keeping the tooth.
  4. In the event that it is impossible to push the tooth back, or the tooth is very soiled, place the tooth into cold milk, or any contact lens solution.
  5. Rush to a dentist as soon as possible, as the sooner the tooth gets put back, the better the chance of keeping the tooth.

Call the clinic as soon as possible to get an appointment.

Call the clinic as soon as possible to get the crown cemented back within a week.

Early childhood caries

It is the presence of decay in any primary tooth in a child 6 years old and younger.

Common causes of decay in young children are:

  1. Frequent exposure to sweetened liquids (milk, formulae, breast milk, juice) or food (candies, chocolate, biscuits) over long period of time.
  2. Frequent intake of food throughout the day.
  3. Lack of good brushing habits
  4. Keeping food in the mouth (food pouching) during mealtimes
  1. Start cleaning an infant’s mouth from birth using clean, wet cloth. Switch to a soft, small toothbrush as soon as the first tooth appears. Parents should be brushing for their children below age 6, twice a day.
  2. After the child can spit effectively, use an adult strength toothpaste of at least 1000ppm fluoride.
  3. Avoid letting your child sleep with a milk bottle or be breastfed throughout the night.
  4. Thirsty children should only drink plain water.
  5. Keep each meal to only 15 minutes.
  6. Bring your child for a dental check up after the first tooth erupts and no later than his or her first birthday.

First dental visit

Before your child’s first birthday, or when his or her first tooth erupts.

The first dental visit is usually fairly short.

We would like to find out more about your child.

A thorough interview will be carried out to learn about your child’s health, dental hygiene habits and also dietary habits.

Appropriate tooth brushing techniques will be demonstrated for children of different age groups.

An examination will follow, depending on the age and level of co-operation of the child, the dentist might use one of the following methods:

  1. Knee to knee (lap to lap) examination
  2. Child sitting on the lap of accompanying adult
  3. Child sitting alone on the dental chair
  1. Over preparing a child might cause more anxiety, hence there is no need to make a big fuss about the visit
  2. Read a book about visiting the dentist to the child
  3. Your child can sense your fears and anxiety, so leave your anxiety at home
  4. Practice opening the mouth for examination
  5. If your child is already experiencing pain, they might fear visiting the dentist, hence do reassure your child that the dentist is here to help.

Pain and swelling

It is a collection of pus in the soft tissue of the jaw, usually caused by the spread of a bacteria infection from a non vital (dead) tooth.

  1. Dental caries progressing into the pulp of the tooth
  2. Dental trauma
  1. Extraction
  2. Root canal therapy in adult dentition
  3. Pulp therapy in primary dentition
  1. Pain
  2. Swelling
  3. Spread of infection
  1. Your child might experience severe pain and infection
  2. The untreated infection might affect the developing adult tooth

Discoloration (staining )

There are basically two types of discoloration

  1. Intrinsic
  2. Extrinsic

Intrinsic discoloration could be due to congenital dental anormalies or a non vital tooth

Extrinsic discoloration are usually due to staining either from bacteria or food source.

  1. A thorough examination to find out the cause is important before we can prescribe the appropriate treatment.
  2. Bleaching and veneers are the common ways to treat intrinsic discoloration
  1. Frequent brushing
  2. Avoid staining food and beverages
  3. Polishing by the dentist

Inhalation sedation

  • Also called the “laughing gas” or “happy air”,
  • One of the safest sedation using a mixture of nitrous oxide with oxygen

Depresses the central nervous system so that patient is relaxed

  1. Your child remains conscious throughout treatment.
  2. The onset and recovery are very fast.
  1. Tingling warm feeling, especially in the arms and legs
  2. A feeling of well-being
  3. Dreamy and relaxed
  4. Sometimes giggly

Your child is required to breathe through a nose piece throughout the treatment.

The dental procedures remains the same, although inhalation sedation does help with pain relief, injection of the gums is still required during dental treatment for most procedure. The good new is that, your child will be able to accept the injection with the help of the gas.

  1. Very young children (below 5 years old)
  2. Children who are unable to breath through their nose/mouth-breather
  3. If the child cannot accept the nose piece
  4. Very fearful and extremely apprehensive child
  5. Children with severe respiratory problem
  6. Recent eye operation in the past 6 months
  7. Cheomotherapeutic drugs like bleomycin and methrotrexate