Dental Care: How Often Should Your Children Have A Dental Checkup?

After your first visit to a pediatric dentist, you must be wondering when the next visit should be. How often you should see a pediatric dentist comes down to different concerns associated with your child’s dental condition. This article will give a clear overview of how often your children should have a dental checkup.

Regular dental checkups 

Starting with regular dental checkups, your children should visit a dentist at least once every six months. This is a generally accepted rule for any dental care. During this regular visit, your child’s pediatric dentist will perform regular dental care, including dental exam, cleaning, fluoride treatment, and x-ray. 

The regular 6-month checkup will allow the dentists to examine and observe your child’s brushing habits and how effective they are- meaning it allows the doctor to check if your child is brushing too hard or not just enough. 

It should also be mentioned that if your child has a healthy dental checkup with nothing alarming as per your pediatric dentist, it doesn’t mean you should skip the regular checkups- or avoid going to a dentist for another 12 months.

Parents who tend to do this will often allow their child’s dental hygiene issues to go unchecked. In worse cases, dental issues like tooth decay, hidden cavities, or inflammation can go untreated, leading to several other dental complications as a child grows. As such, your children must visit a dentist as often as once every six months.

On the other hand, during these regular checkups, your child’s dentist will also be able to identify problems that require an orthodontist (a dentist who specializes in correcting jaw and teeth alignment problems). And depending on your child’s dental issue, the orthodontist will recommend options like virtually invisible aligners, reverse pull face mask, or upper jaw expander- whichever would work best for your child. 

Orthodontists recommend that parents should visit an orthodontist around age 7 – when their permanent teeth start coming. At this stage, teeth misalignments will become apparent and easy to correct at an early stage. 

Checkups for recurring dental/oral issues 

Sometimes your children may experience recurring dental or oral issues. This can include dental hygiene issues like cavities, inflammation, or tooth decay. In such cases, your children should visit the dentist as often as once every three months. 

Recurring oral issues can be problematic for children who are just developing their teeth structure and dental habits. If not given the due dental care, these issues can get complex as your children grow and develop their adult teeth. Treating any alarming dental problems at an early stage will allow your child’s teeth to develop and grow in a healthy oral environment. 

Also, keep in mind that the health of primary teeth can change quickly, leading to tooth decay or tooth misalignments- even in just six months. This occurs as a result of diet or hygiene changes, along with oral habits like thumb-sucking. 

If you’re looking for a pediatric dentist in Dubai, get in touch with us at the Invisalign Center. Specializing in Invisalign treatment, we also equally focus on pediatric dentistry. We believe that children require special attention when it comes to their oral health, and so our specialists strive to offer the most precise dental services for your children. 

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