Toddler Bad Cavity

My 3 year old daughter had a cavity in her front tooth when she was 18 months. We let it go until she didn't want to eat. The dentist put her to sleep and capped it right after her 2nd B-day. Her mouth was swollen for a day and she was very irratable for a couple of days. the Cap was bigger than her other teeth so it looked like it was fake. Anyway, about 2 months later she fell at her daycare place and bumped her teeth. The capped tooth died and the dentist had to pull it and it caused the tooth next to it to start decaying. So they ended up pulling her two front teeth. When we decided to get it capped, the dentist told us that the tooth could still die and they would eventually pull it if that happened. If I could go back, I would have just had them pull the one tooth instead of capping it because when it got bumped it caused the tooth next to it to die. I cried for a week after she got it capped and I cried for another week when they had to pull her two front teeth. People don't really stare (I thought they would). People will ask what happened to her teeth, but it is not as traumatizing as I thought it was going to be. She eats fine and drinks fine and talks fine.

Brushing her teeth is a different story. When she was 1-2 years old, I would have to sit on her and pin her arms under me and hold her head with one hand and brush her teeth with the other. Now that she is 3 we've told her there are little monsters in her mouth that want to eat her teeth, so she lets us most of the time brush her teeth. We've started letting her do it a couple of times a week becuase she is so independent and she hates it when I sit on her and make her brush her teeth.

It was really hard to go through and everyone where I live is so judgemental and I didn't want people to treat her different or think we were bad parents. We also take her to get her teeth cleaned at a local pediatric dentist every 6 months.

Try the battery powered toothbrushes. My kids want to be independent, so I got those for them and they brush their own teeth and have done very well at dentist visits. Sometimes I will have to "guide" it to the back teeth, but once it gets there, they will usually clean those teeth as well.

Good luck!

Check out www.smilesdvd.com It is a great resource for you and your child. The dvd shows you techniques for brushing your child's teeth and models behavior for your child. Will take you from pacifier to braces, you click on the icon showing your child's age and the dvd will show you what you need to know for that age range.

I spoke with the dentist about how to brush my 21-month-old's teeth and it worked beautifully!
Sit cross legged on the floor and have your daughter lay on her back with her head in your lap. Her mouth will automatically pop open as she looks at your face. This position allows you to easily get at all the teeth. Get her a "Firefly" toothbrush (at Walmart) that flashes light as you brush.

My son wouldn't let us brush his teeth at all. It's still not his favorite thing but we get at least one good brushing a day this way. Good luck!

My son had the same problem. He ended up with 3 caps in his mouth be the time he was 4. I took him to the Children's Hospital Dentist. They didn't put him to sleep they just gave him laughing gas and he did just fine.

Try getting her the tablets that turn her teeth colors where she didn't get brushed very well and let her know that she has to brush until all the color is gone. There is also a mouth wash for kids that helps to get to the places that kids miss. The ad on TV says that when they rinse their mouth with it, when the spit it out, it shows how much they missed in the sink. I don't know I haven't tried it yet.

Good Luck

You have to brush her teeth, not an option so offer her choices in how to help but obviously you cannot trust she is doing a good job. Do not cave on that one even if you have to resort to pinning her down, sounds bad but it is so important.

Get her a electric/battery operated brush with a fun charcter on one of those ones that plays music, she does it for one minute then you finish up. Try compromise however it still isn't an option for you to do it.

My daughter had really close baby teeth together, no room at all and no spacing. The first five years she did great, we flossed daily, I brushed at night, she did it in the mornings with my supervision. However, I slacked off on the flossing and sure enough SEVEN CAVATIES in between her baby teeth!!!!! It was insane as they all popped up within a short time and we brushed diligently, she actually loves the dentist even! :)

It sucked, I had to pay the difference of almost $450 from insurance and it was truly a painless thing for her to go through, she didn't mind a bit and was just numb for a while after. Now I bought her some kid flossers and she and I trade off as it is about flossing that is her issue.

Our dentist said the same thing, that decay in baby teeth can cause damage to the permenant tooth. You have to get it taken care of unfortunately. We did not do full blown putting my daughter to sleep but had her breathe through a mask with light gas and was groggy but awake. With a 2 year old it is probably better so she won't move at all. Maybe after going through that experience she will understand the severity of her not letting you brush.

Get it fixed, explain she can help you brush but she has to let you do it too.

Hi J.,
Well I'll just drop a quick note on this subject. It's called "Who's in Charge"? Obviously your daughter is not quite old enough yet to tend to her own brushing or she wouldn't have cavities. Take back your responsibility Mom and yes prep yourself for a fight because you gave her something she wasn't old enough to handle. Persevere and you will win this battle. Good luck!

My son chipped his tooth and it decayed. They ended up pulling it. They strapped him to a board to examine it. I would have MUCH rather him be put to sleep, but he was too young. They were going to cap it, but when they got in there, it was wiggly already, so they pulled it.

I let my 2 year old daughter brush her teeth, then I brush them after her. I bought her some bright kids floss thingies (the technical term LOL). They are bright and have a handle with a little floss at the end. They fit in her mouth. She likes to play with them and will floss her front teeth. I try to get in and floss the rest.

Ask a dentist for the purple tablets that you chew, and they stick to your teeth. Then when you brush well enough, it goes away. It's a nice visual!

Good luck!

I know it sucks but you are going to have to pin her down and brush her teeth for her. If her teeth are that bad then she is not doing a good enough job on her own. My daughter is 2 and I was a dental assistant before I had her so I'm really picky about brushing and I just don't feel like she can do a good enough job on her own. She likes to brush her teeth but I always do a really good brush before bed. I know this sounds bad but I used to have to wait until after her bath while she was all rapped up in her towel so her arms were pined down inside. Then I would lay her on the floor, hold her head with one hand and brush with the other. She would scream and cry but that kinda made it easier cause her mouth would be wide open. I don't have to do that anymore now she just lets me do it no problem. But you have to do that kind of stuff sometimes in order to keep your kids healthy.

Hey J.,

I haven't heard of this, but that doesn't mean it isn't true.

You really need a second opinion. I would NOT let the dentist do anything until you have a second opinion. They should give you a copy of the x-ray for free or for a small fee. They generally won't give you her chart.

The dentist we go to is very honest. He works with patients to help do the best, most cost effective treatment. Here is his website. He is about a block away from the Target on Countyline and University, on University, north.

http://www.littletondentistry.com/

Trust your instincts, mama!

When this happened to my daughter she was about 4 years old. She was scared to death of the dentist so he suggested a pediatric dentist. The first time I took her they tried to give her laughing gas to calm her. It didn't work. We went home and practiced having her wear a (clown nose) like they had to administer the gas. I taped a duplo block onto her nose and had her sit in a chair that I tipped back against the couch for about 5 minutes. This was a tricky thing. About a month later we rescheduled an appointment. This time things went much better. She had some of her teeth capped. It didn't look very nice. Until the teeth come out on their own they have a shiny mouth but it does the trick. I hope your child isn't as restless as mine was. Good luck

My son got his first two teeth at 9 months old. He was completely breastfed, yet still had major decay by his birthday. I was so stressed about it. We finally found a pediatric dentist in the springs Dr. Haman. We took him in for the initial and they said he'd have to have a crown... if there was enough tooth left. By the next appt. two weeks later for the crown, his other tooth was very bad too. He was too little so they could not give him anything. They literally drilled the tooth with nothing! My husband held him down and I stood by their side. It wasn't fun but the whole experince was done in a matter of 10-15 min. That's for drilling two teeth and putting two crowns on. I was amazed! He settled down pretty quick afterward. Since then, both crowns have fallen off and had to be replaced 5 min. each time. He's been to the dentist 4 times in 5 months. She didn't charge for the replacements thankgoodness!!
Ultimatly I would say it's no fun, but it is necessary. I would ABSOLUTLY take them to a pediatric dentist. I had wanted him put to sleep for the experience but now that I've done it I'm glad that we didn't, you never know how that is going to affect them.
About the brushing. Try to get them to cooperate. try special toothbrushes, toothpaste etc. but ultimatly, is she just won't you just have to hold her down and do it really good. It's either that or hundreds in dentist bills and all the misery that comes with that. So I think it's the lesser of the two evils. To make it easier I just use an adult size soft electric toothbrush. Those tiny kids brushes take forever which you don't have with a toddler, and my dentist said just use whatever works! An adult brush gets the job done so well and so quick!
HTH and good luck,
S.

My first son (now 4½)had to get a cap on one of his molars & has also had a few other cavities sealed. We went in & the dentist did the laughing gas & put the cap on and we haven't had any problems since.
As far as brushing goes, we use a regular kid paste & then follow that up with a floride gel stuff that must be spit out & not swallowed. We let our son brush on his own while we watch. As soon as he spits in the sink I tell him that it is time for Mommy to Supervise & check how he did. I then take the brush & go back over the teeth really well. As i am going back over the teeth I say things like what a good job he did brushing. We then let him rinse with a small cup of water & following with the floride (we purchased at our dentist office). Again i let him do the floride first & then after he spits I tell him Mommy has to check them to make sure he got them good. This has been working really well for us & has become a ritual. Our son knows cavities are bad & he doesn't want anymore so he is more than willing to partipate in the brushing ritual. Maybe if you let your daughter think she is doing it completely on her own, but let her know that you are there to supervise & that you need to be able to make sure she got all the teeth clean might help you be able to go in after her & re-brush any areas she didn't get good enough.

Good luck!

I have been through a similar situation with my youngest. As soon as his teeth came in they had a gray tint. At first I thought nothing of it but they got worse so I took him to the dentist. Turns out according to the dentist (same one I had as a child so very knowledgable)that he delveloped an issue inutero. Several of his teeth needed work, needless to say I spent thousands of dollars only for the teeth to fall out or not hold a crown because there wasn't enough tooth left. Definately take care of the bad tooth but I would have it pulled. I don't feel you should put a small child 'under'. My son had a lot of dental work which included pulling teeth, some with no novacaine and some with. Also if her other teeth are being affected I personally don't feel it's from lack of brushing I believe that a cavity is almost like an infection and it spreads to other teeth. It's great that she brushes her own teeth. I wouldn't try to stop that maybe just monitor and guide her more.

She might be more willing to let you brush her teeth if you let her brush yours first! You could turn it into a game - she brushes yours and then you brush hers. After you've finished brushing her teeth, you can give her the brush and let her take over - encourage her to do it herself (after you've done it for her) because it's a great skill to learn.

I used to pin my kids down in my lap and brush their teeth. When I was finished THEN they were allowed to practice brushing their own teeth.

Start brushing your teeth in front of her. Tell her you have to brush all the germs off your teeth. The pink dye thing might work, but I hate those tablets. Get an automatic toothbrush. Tell her you have to do it, and then she gets a turn as well. Take away something like dessert until she lets you. Tell her if she lets you do it first, then you'll let her pick out her own toothbrush and toothpaste (of course give her the options that you approve of first to choose from). Have her do the "Ah" sound to open her mouth, and the "E" sound to do the fronts of her teeth. It really works.

I don't know if I would want to have my 2 year old put under unless it was necessary. He may not want here moving around a lot. Caps are very expensive even if you have dental insurance. Good luck. Have you tried the spin brushes? That will help her brush her teeth better. It could also help to have her put a little mouth wash on her brush for a "pre-brushing" Just make sure the mouth wash is made for kids. Maybe you could teach her how to use mouth wash.

Just a couple thoughts:
1. Look at the X-Ray to see the cavity.
2. Get a 2nd opinion on how to handle the procedure. Even if you really like your ped its a good idea to get a sense of how offices handle procedure on a 2yo.
3. Make sure to accompany your child. It is now illegal in CO for a dentist to refuse entry for parents to observe procedures on their children. You don't want to know the story, truly.

GL! Sorry this happened and from now on brush our daughters teeth for her. Do whatever it takes, have DH hold her, headlock, and definitely a battery operated brush.

I feel for you! My son goes in a week from Friday to get a root canal, 4 caps and several fillings done. He's 3. The dentist said genetics and being a preemie had something to do with it. My daughter who is 2 didn't have a single cavity and she eats the same things and gets her teeth brushed the same. He will be put to sleep as well. Partly to make the work easier and partly to make it less traumatic for my son. He has a history of asthma with cause unknown so it's even more nerve wracking. Best of luck!

Sounds like you really have no choice or all her teeth will start rotting. I do have to say, though...you need to brush her teeth atleast once a day, then let her do it the other times. I brused all my kids teeth til they were 6, and so far we are cavity free. At 2 she has no idea where to get and what she may be missing.
good luck! I know putting them under is scary-but I really can't see a choice here.
~L.