Most families use the same dentist for everyone in the family for convenience sake. We get it. Why drive two different places when you can only drive one? However, the conveniences of only using a general dentist for the family may be outweighed by the benefits of using a specialized pediatric dentist for the kids.
Specialization
The obvious benefit to using a pediatric dentist for your kids and not a general dentist would be that pediatric dentists are specifically trained to deal with children’s teeth. Children’s teeth, gums and mouths change shape and alignment over time as they grow. A mold of your child’s mouth 6 months from now may look completely different than a mold made today. Last year’s mold for you won’t change very much from today’s. That kind of rapid change in kids requires specialized training and experience that only a pediatric dentist will have.
Sedation
For children, a visit to the dentist can potentially go a number of different ways. If not handled carefully, a hopefully positive experience can quickly change to fear, crying, screaming and resistance to treatment. Unfortunately, most general dentists when they work on a child’s teeth, usually resort to sedation as a first option. Knowing if sedation is necessary or not can make or break the entire experience and pediatric dentists are better at knowing when and when not to sedate.
At Pediatric Smiles, we stick to the following principle: The Less Sedation, The Better. When we say “conservative approach”, we mean utilizing the least amount of sedation, and the least invasive treatments possible to still get the best dental outcomes for your child. You can learn more about our Smart Step Sedation policy here.
Equipment
My grandfather always told me that in order to do a job right, you need the right tools. You can use a flat-head screwdriver on some phillips-head screws, but you’ll never be as efficient as you could be and it will definitely take longer. Smaller mouths require smaller, sometimes different shaped tools. General dentists only have tools that fit adult mouths so when you take your child to a general dentist, they are essentially working with less efficient tools. You can save yourself and your child a lot of discomfort and time by going to a pediatric dentist that always has the right tools on hand for your child’s mouth.
