New teeth for 3 yr old.... Dentist Question.

[condo bought]

My daughter is perfectly healthy. Thankfully.

However, when her teeth came the front, top 4 teeth didn't have enamel on them.

It's common enough, but usually not with 4 teeth.

She is nearly 3 now.

She has a perfect mouth full of teeth, except the front 4 top teeth, which are little black stubs, as the the inside (outside, for her) of the teeth rotted away as they came down without any enamel to protect them.

I see a lot of kids here with silver teeth, where the same has happened, and they've put in silver metal fillings or crowns, or what ever they are called.

I would prefer her to have natural white looking teeth attached, and not metal ones.

Has anybody got experience with this?

What sort of work is typically needed? what is the type of tooth that is attached called? A crown? That is made and screwed into the stub of her original tooth?

How old should she be before getting work like this done?

Thanks

[kingstonkid]

She will eventually lose those teeth as they are baby teeth. Have they said what the normal teeth will be like?

I am not sure of what happens but I would think that it would be better to wiat and see what happens when her adult teeth come in.

[does]

I would agree. And if a dentist suggests treatment, make sure to get a second and even a third opinion.

She will eventually lose those teeth as they are baby teeth. Have they said what the normal teeth will be like?

I am not sure of what happens but I would think that it would be better to wiat and see what happens when her adult teeth come in.

[sunnyjim5]

I would be very surprised if a dentist agreed to attempt major reconstructive surgery on a three year old child's deciduous teeth.

If you do find someone offering to do such work then be sure to (as suggested above) obtain at least one second opinion.

[realenglish1]

If you want you can have onlays done but she will loose those teeth soon as she gets older

I would wait to see if her adult teeth or normal or not

Make sure she is not eating sugar as it sounds like a sugar problem

[scorecard]

I would be very surprised if a dentist agreed to attempt major reconstructive surgery on a three year old child's deciduous teeth.

If you do find someone offering to do such work then be sure to (as suggested above) obtain at least one second opinion.

I have two friends, in Thailand, who have kids with teeth problems.

- In one case - final teeth have come down but the 6 front teeth across the top are very misaligned, it looks awful, and the girl is very shy to open her mouth (understandable). I think she would be 9 years old.

- The second case - child has his second teeth, but four front top teeth and three front bottom teeth completely gone from a motor cycle accident, I think he's about 6 years old.

In both cases the parents have been to two dental clinics in two different 5 star hospitals in Bangkok for advice.

At all consultations they were given various options of how it can all be fixed (braces, implants etc.) but were also informed clearly that it's illegal for such treatments in Thailand before the child turns 14 years old.

Both families contacted dental clinics in other countries and got pretty much the same information.

But regardless of the above surely, in the OPs circumstances, there is some type of coating which could help and would not be invasive in any way, even if it needs to applied every few months.

Edited February 5, 2016 by scorecard

[Robbieseal]

The silver teeth are the best, in my experience of both, but I only had them capped on a 3 year old plus some molar fillings

Pay for any dental work of the type she needs that is available with full anesthetic, if you youtube children s dentistry you will see that

the "papoose" restraint is horrifying.

Costs in BangkoK vary wildly x 300 %

PM me for recommendation if u wish.

Edited February 5, 2016 by Robbieseal

[xtrnuno41]

Indeed wise to do anything now as she will change in few years to her permanent teeth.

A crown is placed over an existing tooth and can not be rotten,

However the other one is an implant and only possible to execute when reaching age of 18,

coz it takes that long to full grow a person, so the jaws of that person.

Normally all grows in years to adult..

So to adult age and being fullgrown, maybe a bridge is needed to fill gap.

As maybe the teeth have to come out then?

All depends on how the new teeth will be.

They talk about

Amelogenesis imperfecta

Also infections or bacteries can effect this problem

and then it can even be as one of the parents do have it and it is genetic

As the teeth are without enamel they are funerable and hard to clean.

I see here in Holland they have a special clinic for those kids, so it is not that simple.

As kids grow, their teeth will grow, so probably needs many more adapations in time for crowns.

[sangenuer]

As others have said, you do not need to do reconstructive work on baby teeth. The only thing to be aware of is the potential for decay to go all the way into the root, which could cause problems including infection. Have a dentist keep an eye on that. If the teeth were still sound you could look into having them sealed, but at this point it seems like there probably isn't much point. Worst case scenario is that she loses those teeth prematurely. My youngest daughter actually lost both bottom front teeth at 10 months. The dentist (in the U.S.) said we didn't need to do anything, and we didn't. She had a gap-toothed smile until her permanent teeth came in, on schedule with no problems. My middle daughter has no enamel on her permanent teeth due to nutritional deficiencies in early infancy (we adopted her at 9 months). She also has other dental problems like missing permanent teeth. She is 12 now and work has started to prepare her for orthodontics, probably in another year. But she won't be able to get bonding on the damaged teeth or implants for the missing teeth until after she's 18.

All that to say, as much as the appearance might bother you now, there's not likely to be any long-term problems with your daughter's teeth. Whatever caused the enamel problem on her baby teeth is unlikely to affect her permanent teeth, since they are formed at different times (baby teeth in utero, permanent teeth during infancy). Just keep up with brushing and dental checkups and everything should be fine in a couple of years.

[Tracyb]

If you want you can have onlays done but she will loose those teeth soon as she gets older

I would wait to see if her adult teeth or normal or not

Make sure she is not eating sugar as it sounds like a sugar problem

Or drinking a lot of juice, or condensed milk that is watered down, or other sweetened drinks!

[scorecard]

As others have said, you do not need to do reconstructive work on baby teeth. The only thing to be aware of is the potential for decay to go all the way into the root, which could cause problems including infection. Have a dentist keep an eye on that. If the teeth were still sound you could look into having them sealed, but at this point it seems like there probably isn't much point. Worst case scenario is that she loses those teeth prematurely. My youngest daughter actually lost both bottom front teeth at 10 months. The dentist (in the U.S.) said we didn't need to do anything, and we didn't. She had a gap-toothed smile until her permanent teeth came in, on schedule with no problems. My middle daughter has no enamel on her permanent teeth due to nutritional deficiencies in early infancy (we adopted her at 9 months). She also has other dental problems like missing permanent teeth. She is 12 now and work has started to prepare her for orthodontics, probably in another year. But she won't be able to get bonding on the damaged teeth or implants for the missing teeth until after she's 18.

All that to say, as much as the appearance might bother you now, there's not likely to be any long-term problems with your daughter's teeth. Whatever caused the enamel problem on her baby teeth is unlikely to affect her permanent teeth, since they are formed at different times (baby teeth in utero, permanent teeth during infancy). Just keep up with brushing and dental checkups and everything should be fine in a couple of years.

Good points.

Quote: "As others have said, you do not need to do reconstructive work on baby teeth. The only thing to be aware of is the potential for decay to go all the way into the root, which could cause problems including infection".

From my personal experiences with my Thai son and his two girls and the professional dental advice received this especially means:

- Strongly limit sugar intake. I'm sure most TV members are well aware this means typical snacks in colourful plastic bags and boxes, soda drinks, prepared heat at home plastic boxes of food (from you know where), and many foods bought from vendors on the streets, and more (some already mentioned by other posters).

Also (from our dentist) beware of some brands / styles of yogurt, especially be alert for the tubs with large advertising 'low fat', or '0% fat'. In many cases they have even more added sugar but the sugar content is in very small print.

- Again from our dentist, after drinking milk children should drink a small amount of water to ensure milk residue is not sitting around their teeth for a long time. But this doesn't mean reduce milk intact.

-

Edited February 5, 2016 by scorecard

[bazza40]

As other posters have said, better to wait until the permanent teeth emerge.

Have you checked what water she normally drinks? I'm no dentist, however, it's possible there is either a fluoride deficiency or excessive fluoride in the water supply, which may account for the lack of enamel development.

[crouchpeter]

This faulty enamel was caused by a systemic illness at about 6 months of age. It will not affect her adult incisors which will erupt at about 6 years of age. Some dentists used to put Silver Nitrate solution on the dentine and caries to harden it.No treatment necessary usually,even though it looks bad. It won't affect the second teeth.

Crouch(BDS)

[Autonuaq]

depending on the cosmetics as well if it is really needed.

Generaly the remove the teeth if needed.

Remind that is is the the baby theeth of the 1st set of teeths.

can not see picture or the mouth so can not provide judge ment.

please go to see a dentist and another and another and another if needed.

think most of them will say do nothing till there are some problems then see if removal is needed. The rest is cosmetic.

please go to see a dentist and another and another and another if needed then make you judgment,

.

[whiterussian]

The silver teeth are the best, in my experience of both, but I only had them capped on a 3 year old plus some molar fillings

Pay for any dental work of the type she needs that is available with full anesthetic, if you youtube children s dentistry you will see that

the "papoose" restraint is horrifying.

Costs in BangkoK vary wildly x 300 %

PM me for recommendation if u wish.

A general anaesthetic on a 3 yr old is dangerous, the restraints ARE awful, but not in place for long, if the dentist plans out the course of action and has 3 technicians in the room...

Look for a specialist dental clinic - they'll have laughing gas, and staff used to doing work fast with screaming kids.

Edited February 5, 2016 by whiterussian

[Tapster]

@condo bought

I was a dentist in the UK for 24 years.

If the 4 upper front teeth are 'little black stumps' the most important thing is that they should not become abscessed and affect the development of the permanent teeth which will replace them.

Black teeth are decayed teeth and if the decay is still active (only an examination can tell you that) it can lead to death of the pulp (the 'nerve') and formation of an abscess on the root of the tooth.

Baby teeth are not really suitable for cosmetic dentistry for a number of reasons so I would urge you to think long-term to ensure that the permanent teeth (erupting in only another 3 years) are sound.

Go to a dentist, have an examination, accept that she might need to lose these 4 teeth if the decay is too advanced.

Kids have gaps in their teeth. Children develop at different rates and it's common for there to be no front teeth while waiting for permanent teeth to erupt.

This doesn't cause the psychological trauma that it might to an adult so please don't worry about the appearance so much as about how healthy these teeth are.

Good luck.

[Khon Kaen Dave]

Sorry to read about your daughters teeth.Its a shame in one so young.Where i live,there is a young girl,next door.She is 4 years old and has 2 filling's already.her mother is away working in the south and the girl is left in the care of her grandparent's.When this child comes to visit us,to play with our puppy,she is always in possession of something sweet.She eats sweets all the time.The girl is very boisterous and full of fun,as kids of that age should be.However i get the feeling that suger,in various forms,is given to her as a 'keep quiet' excuse.When her mother came to visit,my wife did comment that the girl was eating too much sugar.The answer was 'well what can i do,I'm not here to take care' Surely,in this day and age,and the 'slimness' fad that Thai girls are so stuck on,they should now be aware of the consequences of eating sugar to excess.I'm not saying that this is the case with your girl.But i fear for this baby,if the Grandparents insist on feeding the child sugar as a matter of course.

I hope your daughter comes through.

KKD

[alecko19]

Considering that your daughter’s front teeth appear like “black stubs” already, it means they are already decayed. The extent of the decay is what matters, as it may eventually lead to more serious infection that can affect her gums. My niece (4 years old) had similar condition with her 2 front teeth and I accompanied her mom to see a dentist (Bangkok Smile in Asoke). Their pediatric dental specialist told us it was good that we took her to the clinic in time before an abscess occurred. She presented us with option of extracting the teeth or treating them with a dental inlay or onlay. To cut to the chase, I would advise talking your daughter for a dental check-up to prevent further problems. The sooner the better, and from what I remember, a kid’s tooth can be treated as early as 2 years of age.

[condo bought]

Look away now if squimish.

These are the offenders in question.

All her other teeth are perfectly okay. These came down with no enamel, the rest, as they say, is history.