Pedodontist

A child’s experiences during the formative years can go a long way in formulating the individual’s personality as an adult. One of the multitudes of experiences is the visit to the dentist. Somehow the dentist is always caricatured as a pain imparting tooth puller.

A Pedodontist is a dentist who specializes in handling children, obviating the fear in a child’s mind that is usually created by seeing the complex gadgetry and plethora of drills. The Pedodontist is specially trained to win the child’s confidence, making the child aware of the responsibility of looking after his/her teeth and the importance of a healthy mouth.

A number of procedures are modified from the norm to become possible in a small child’s mouth. It is important to remember that the first dentition of a child will ultimately fall off and be replaced by a new complement of teeth that are permanent and will not be replaced by any more teeth. Even though the first set of teeth, deciduous or milk teeth, will ultimately fall off, it is necessary to preserve them till they are supposed to last.

This will ensure a healthy and correctly aligned permanent set of teeth. A Pedodontist will go to great lengths to see to it that this is the case. Even if the teeth are lost, the Pedodontist will work towards maintaining the space until the permanent teeth are guided into the right place.

The biggest challenge facing the Pedodontist is the scared and nervous child and converting the child into a confident patient. Generally, treating a child will take two or three times more than it will take for the same procedure in an adult. It is worth the effort to do so.