DENTAL SPECIALIST
A healthy smile provides an incredible foundation for your child’s confidence, health and overall wellbeing. Our pediatric dentist Dr. Nilava Ghatak at Georgian Mall Dental Group in Barrie is ideally suited to help that foundation grow to its full potential, with the professional expertise and hands-on skills, passion and compassion geared to your child’s unique needs and state-of-mind. Let us show you how we can help build, grow and maintain a lifetime’s-worth of healthy smiles for your wonderful little treasure.
NO REFERRAL
NECESSARY
DIRECT BILLING
OPTIONS ARE
AVAILABLE
The Canadian Dental Association recommends your first visit should be within six months of the appearance of the first tooth, or by their first birthday. Then visit us regularly every six months so we can catch small problems early. The goal is to have your child visit the dentist before there is a problem.
We’re here to make sure your child’s first visit a great experience! We’ll start by introducing them to the dentist’s chair and give them a fun “chair ride”, and then let them check out how some of the other cool equipment works. Once they’re comfortable, we’ll take a careful look to make sure everything in the mouth is developing naturally, educating you on how to care for your child’s early teeth, and talk about good habits and best practices.
Did you know your child’s first visit to a dentist should take place by the time they are one years old? Honestly, this visit may be among the most important things you do in your child’s early development. During your first appointment, we will give you advice on how to properly care for your child’s early teeth and talk about good habits and best practices. We’ll also take a careful and caring look to make sure everything in the mouth is developing naturally.
We’re here to make sure your child’s teeth and smile are as healthy (and shiny!) as possible. That’s why we recommend applying a simple, non-invasive sealant to help prevent cavities from forming in the intricate grooves of your child’s molars. This protective coating guards against plaque and bacteria formation in these hard-to-reach places.
Proven time and again to be completely harmless when used with children, laughing gas is an amazingly effective way to make kids feel more comfortable with their dental procedure. They can choose from fun scents like strawberry, bubblegum or mint, which they’ll inhale through a “piggy nose”, and once the gas is turned off the nitrous oxide leaves their body almost immediately. Your child will remain awake throughout the procedure, and be back to their normal selves again by the time they leave our operatory.
We recommend you bring your child in for a regular checkup and cleaning every 3-6 months. This allows us to professionally clean their teeth and remove any stubborn buildup, and polish and fluoride their teeth to keep them in proper dental health. We’ll also make sure their teeth, gums and mouth continue to look healthy, and offer friendly advice on all your homecare needs.
Don’t worry, Mom & Dad – even with the best brushing routines and dental care at home, cavities are unfortunately still a fact of life. For small cavities, we exclusively use white fillings so the dental work blends right in. If the cavity is too large for a simple filling, a crown may be the best solution. Depending on the nature of the cavity, you may have the option of selecting a silver or white crown for your child.
A tongue and lip tie release is often recommended to provide relief from issues with breastfeeding. Other reasons include to promote improved speech, improved teeth-cleaning ability, decreased risk of developing a cavity and to relieve muscle tension. This laser method only takes a couple minutes, is clean (no bleeding) and effectively disinfects the wound during treatment.
Breastfeeding issues
A lip or tongue tie can also create problems with breastfeeding. This issue can often be difficult for parents to detect on their own. If your child is due for their first appointment, or even if they’re a newborn and you would like an expert assessment, bring your baby in and we look for lip and tongue tie as part of our assessment. A simple laser release fixes the issue and only takes a couple minutes.
Depending on your child’s anxiety level, they may require greater sedation than laughing gas alone. If this is the case, we’ll give your child a special drink thirty minutes before treatment, to help them feel relaxed while still enabling them to remain awake throughout the procedure.
We understand that children with special health care needs are unique. We have experience in providing individualized dental care to these patients. Children with special health care needs (SHCN) may be more susceptible to oral disease due to their condition and require oral health care of a specialized nature. We have experience in providing dental care to patients with SHCN such as Autism Spectrum Disorder, Down Syndrome and Cerebral Palsy. A child with SHCN can also include patients with Amelogenesis Imperfecta, Dentinogenesis Imperfecta and oral cancer. Children with SHCN should keep healthy teeth and gums since it is an integral part of their general health and well-being. We are dedicated to providing the best dental care to this special population.
You can start cleaning your baby’s mouth even at a young age, before getting their first teeth. Simply wipe their gums and teeth area with a clean, damp washcloth.
Many parents don’t realize that those “healthy alternative” such as fruit snacks are actually worse for their child’s oral health – because it sticks to the teeth longer than something like chocolate that is easier to wash away. A best practice is to try to minimize sugary foods. Look for healthier options such as: cheese cubes and carrots.
Plastic and rubber chew toys aren’t your only option to ease your baby’s teething pain. A cold, damp washcloth can also help numb the ache and inflammation, while a gentle massage can also help relieve the pain.
A Pediatric Dentist specializes in children’s oral health, and can help accommodate dental fears and anxiety. To help them stay calm, or when the procedure warrants, we can consult with you on solutions such as laughing gas, oral sedation and general anesthesia (dentistry asleep)
Avoid giving your child milk or juice in their bottle before nap and bedtime because the sugars will stay on their teeth; instead, make a routine out of using a washcloth to gently clean their mouth before they go “nighty night.”
1. Handle the tooth carefully and do not touch the root.
2. If the tooth is dirty, hold by the crown and rinse with milk. (or water if you don’t have milk)
3. Keep the tooth moist – drop it in a glass of milk, or have your child spit in a cup and store the tooth in their saliva. 4. If your child has calmed down, you can try slipping the tooth back into its socket (but don’t try to force it); otherwise keep it moist in the glass of milk or saliva.
5. See a specialist at Georgian Mall Dental Group as soon as possible. TIP. When you see a dentist within 1 hour of the tooth being knocked out, you dramatically increase the chances of the tooth being saved.