Preventive Dentistry – San Luis Obispo, CA
The Expert Care Your Child Needs
Prevention is a huge focus here at Coastal Pediatric Dentistry. That’s because avoiding cavities is always much easier than getting them fixed! With regular checkups, cleanings, and plenty of laughs and smiles along the way, we can help your young ones stay issue-free year after year so they can spend more time having fun and less in our dental office. To schedule your little (or not so little!) one’s next appointment, give us a call today.
Why Choose Coastal Pediatric Dentistry for Preventive Dentistry?
- Board-certified pediatric dentist
- Only use safe & non-toxic materials
- Fun & kid-friendly environment
Oral Risk Assessment
When you bring your baby in to see us for the first time, you and your little one will be brought to our baby room, with a small couch and lots of toys and books. We’ll begin the appointment by asking you about their (brief) medical history, and then we’ll do a gentle exam on their gums, any teeth that might have already come in, as well as their jaw and bite. This will let both you and our team know that all is well with your baby’s smile, and if we spot an issue, catching it early is the best way to avoid having to deal with more involved problems down the line. Your child will get to sit on your lap during the entire exam. After the exam, we’ll go over the best ways to take care of your little smile at home.
Teething
Teething can be an uncomfortable time for children and parents alike--new teeth coming in can be quite uncomfortable! Fortunately, there are a number of tips and tricks you can use to soothe your baby that don’t involve them munching on sugary treats. You can massage your baby’s gums with a clean finger, and there are a number of safe products designed specifically for teething babies to chew on that can help provide relief. Want a recommendation? We’re always happy to give one to you.
Non-Nutritive Habits
Non-nutritive habits usually refer to either thumb/finger sucking or tongue thrusting, both of which are very common habits for young children. As infants, these habits can be relatively harmless, but as a child ages and their teeth start to come in, it can eventually hamper their oral development. We can give you a number of strategies to help your child break these habits if need be, ones that focus on positive reinforcement so it’s a (relatively) pleasant experience for everyone.
Frenuloplastia & Frenectomies
Children who have a tongue-tie or lip-tie that inhibits their oral function can often benefit from these quick procedures, and to make them as comfortable and efficient as possible, we only use the Solea Laser when performing them. In just a few minutes without any pain or bleeding, we can quickly remove excess oral tissue so that your child is able to eat, speak, and smile normally.
Learn More About Laser FrenectomyHealthy Start System
The Healthy Start System is a new approach to early-age orthodontics that doesn’t involve metal braces. Instead, if we believe that if your child already has or may develop teeth alignment problems, we can have them wear a series of comfortable, custom made oral appliances that will simply guide their teeth into the proper positions. With this system, we can lessen potential orthodontic problems and even correct some completely, helping a child avoid the need for more extensive treatments in the future.
Learn More About the Healthy Start SystemDental Checkups & Teeth Cleanings
With teenage patients, their checkups and cleanings will start to more closely resemble the ones you get with your own dentist. In addition to an oral exam and professional cleaning, this is also the age where we’ll start to look at your child and see if they might benefit from any orthodontic treatment. By coming in to see us regularly, we’ll be able to treat any potential issues your child might have as early as possible, helping them avoid the need for more extensive (and expensive!) procedures later on.
Learn More About Dental Checkups and CleaningsDental Sealants
Even though your teen may be able to brush and floss on their own, their back teeth are still extremely vulnerable to developing cavities. Their rough and pitted surfaces are the perfect places for plaque and bacteria to become trapped, and they’re quite tricky to adequately clean as well. With a dental sealant, we can literally place an invisible shield over these teeth to block out cavity-causing factors. We’ll apply a clear, plastic-based substance to the teeth that goes on as a liquid and quickly hardens into place, creating a protective barrier.
Resin Infiltration (ICON)
In the not too distant past, fillings and crowns were the only ways we could treat teens who had developed cavities. Now, if we’re able to catch tooth decay early enough, we have access to a third, much more conservative option. With resin infiltration, we simply apply a small amount of composite resin to the decayed area of a tooth to stop it from spreading, and that’s it! This approach is proven effective, completely painless, and doesn’t require the removal of any dental structure.
Oral Cancer Screenings
No parent wants to think about their child developing oral cancer, but it is still quite possible. Early detection and treatment make this disease relatively simple to treat, but its initial symptoms can be quite easy to miss by untrained eyes. To make sure your child stays safe, we will perform a complete oral cancer screening as part of their regular checkups. It only takes a few minutes, but it could literally be the few minutes that saves their life.
Fluoride Treatments
Fluoride is a mineral you’ll often find added to toothpaste and public water sources because it has long been shown to help lower a person’s chances of developing cavities. However, many teens don’t get enough day-to-day to keep their smiles fully protected, which is why we’re happy to provide a topical fluoride treatment at their regular checkups. It’s fast, painless, and one of the best ways to stop cavities before they even start.
Sportsguard/Nightguards
If your teen regularly plays sports or unconsciously grinds their teeth while they sleep, then Coastal Pediatric Dentistry is ready to provide them with the custom-made solution they need. For young athletes, we can create a specially-fitted sportsguard that will be much stronger and more comfortable than anything you can buy at the store. And, to stop harmful grinding, we can have them wear a nightguard to bed, which is a small appliance that places a protective barrier between the teeth, helping both you and your teen rest easy.
Gum Disease Therapy
Gum disease is a very common bacterial infection that can develop due to a lack of oral hygiene, and its early symptoms are red, swollen, tender gums that bleed easily during brushing. Left untreated, it can easily lead to tooth loss! If we find that your teen has gum disease, we can use a special cleaning called scaling and root planing as well as targeted antibiotics to take care of the infection.
