Surgery for Infected Molar Tooth in 5 Year Old,anyone Any INPUT!!!

My son had to have 4 teeth out when he was 2, under anesthesia and two more this year with just novacaine. He is also the kind of person who remembers everything and it was very hard to imagine getting thru this especially because it was my fault-he had severely decayed teeth because I didnt know he could get tooth decay from breast milk... Anyway, we got thru it. He was fine after both times. Since they are so small, the time that they are under is very short and they only use a very light type of anesthesia. I know that you will both get through it...imagine the next day and try to remain as calm as you can...hugs to you and good luck!

Ask him if twilight sleep would do after giving your son versaid (giggle juice) and laughing gas. Ask for the IV in his hand to be put in AFTER he falls asleep from the versaid and laughing gas. That would be a lot better than general anesthesia. I do agree that he shouldn't have it done in the office. This is exactly what the Children's Hospital did for my child when removing a tooth.

The antibiotics give you time to sort this out because he needs to get the swelling down from the infection before the surgery.

Good luck!
Dawn

Well, my 3 year old has multiple cavities. We had temporary fillings put in while she was awake and it was horrible. The laughing gas didn't take and even with novacaine it was miserable--she screamed and fought. So we are doing the general anesthesia next time at the hospital. I'm not thrilled but the alternative was not good for us either. But the dental work needs to get done. It is possible that your 5 year old can understand what is happening a lot better but that was my experience.

If it is infected, it can be reinfected again. I had my son's molar extracted because I don't want him under too much relaxing medication, trauma and also saves money. Let's do the GA one and done.
If you are nervous, your kid can feel it.
I remember when my son had surgery, the surgeon told me to make myself busy. From his experience, nervous mom sometimes make the surgery process fails.
If you look afraid and nervous, the child will think that it must be really bad.
But, if you look relaxed ( try to), he can count on you that he will be okay.
Don't worry mom.
GA isn't that dangerous, he is already 5.
They say if someone is nervous, no matter how much they inject the numbing drug, it won't work.
So, GA is an option. I can't imagine he squirms and scream then the drilling machine hurt his mouth.

No chance in getting him to consider having it pulled while awake, huh?

My daughter had an infected molar, her little cheek was swollen and puffy. I took her to the dentist, got some antibiotics, it ran the course and we had it pulled. It took all of 5 minutes to pull it out. My daughter didn't even cry, she didn't even know it was out until the dentist showed her. She was also 5.

NOW, rewind a few months prior and I went to this horrible Dr.Giggles-type pediatric dentist who used some sort of device to latch my daughter's mouth open, I had to hold her down, the works. Of course, the dentist said general anesthesia to do anything, which it very expensive. I was so conflicted about it. It got infected when I was trying to make up my mind (bad, I know). The new dentist was so nice and really knew how to deal with children, AND she is not a pediatric dentist.

I know his tooth is infected, but see if you can find a dentist he can click with. Also, do not let him know you are nervous. They can pick it up and become scared, too.

I don't know why you are freaked out. It's a simple IV and they go to sleep, the doc does all the work, the kid wakes up and wants to go eat and play at McDonalds. They don't remember it, they still like the dentist after it's over, they don't have any issues.

It is the most humane way to treat any dental issues.

If the doc opted to pull it instead I guess the molar would be missing a long time if he isn't going to loose the baby molars until he's at least 10. I don't know. If the doc said he could save the tooth or do a root canal and cap it I would not want him to do that until the infection was gone so none of it could be trapped under the cap.

Our girl fell at her moms and broke her front tooth off. The regular kids dentist would not even examine it. She gave me a list of Pediatric Dentists to call. I called, made an appointment, she went in, went to sleep, woke up happy and playful, wanted to go eat since she was NPO since midnight the night before. No crying, no screaming, no issues whatsoever.

The boy had tubes put in last year. He went in happy, came out screaming like a banshee, fighting everyone, hitting, kicking, not consolable until about 1/2 hour out of surgery. They didn't put him out with GA, it was a gas instead.

He had dental work done in the hospital out patient surgery with GA. He woke up happy, pulled his IV out, rolled over and went back to sleep. He woke up about 20 minutes later and wanted to go eat at McDonalds and play on the playground.

It was the easiest thing we have ever done. GA is easy and safe.

He is going to be ok... but get the tooth out and do it ASAP. My daughter had her first and only cavity (so far, knock on wood) when she was 6... They tried to root canal it which I totally cried about because they gave her laughing gas but something didn't "take" and about 5 months later it was an abscess like you are dealing with now. Also a molar, also gums swelling, everything. They told me the tooth needed to come out and I freaked out... wanted to just give her antibiotics etc esp because they told me that she would need a spacer to hold the spot open. The thought of metal in my daughter's beautiful mouth made me want to puke. So for about a day I was anti extraction and we started on antibiotics while I "thought" about what we were going to do. I started researching and immediately agreed that the tooth needed to come out. My daughter was not nervous but does have a very low pain tolerance and the tooth was taken out with ZERO anesthesia/laughing gas etc. So even though it seems invasive, they really can do it without and your child will not feel a thing as long as they numb the area enough. I would find a pediatric dentist and talk to him about the possibility of laughing gas for your little one rather than doing GA. I just think that maybe laughing gas would be enough to take his anxiety away given that my little one said it didn't hurt a bit, even with nothing. Good luck mama, get it out so it can't cause problems. Abscesses are no good because infection can spread.

At that age, my son had his front (not loose at ALL) upper tooth pulled with novocaine (sp?). He did just fine. (And there was YANKING involved!)