Today, we checked Katriana out of school and went for a dental check up. It has been atleast a year since she last saw the dentist, so we knew that she was due for a visit. She recently lost her two bottom front teeth, but the permanent teeth were coming in behind the baby ones, so we were a little concerned. After a little research we found out that this is quite common, but still merits a trip to the dentist, because some dentists will want to go ahead and pull the baby tooth to make room for the permanent tooth, or pull nearby teeth to make room, so we went. The dentist looked in her mouth, poked around, and proclaimed that Katriana has zero decay and not to worry about the teeth. Well, okay. Sounds good. Then I start asking about sealants for her back baby teeth, because our stateside dentist had said we should get those on her teeth by the time she turns 6. The Aussie dentist raised her eyebrows at me and said it wasn't needed. Apparently, in this part of the world, they would only put sealants on baby teeth if the child was prone to decay on some of their other baby teeth, otherwise, it's just overkill. Our stateside dentist also started doing teeth cleanings at age 5, but the Aussie says that is just wrong. The enamel on baby teeth is thin and delicate, and the products they use to clean strong permanent teeth could do more harm than good on baby teeth. Well, okay. So, now my question is, do I get a second opinion? Maybe our states dentist was just aggressive? Maybe our Aussie dentist is too laid back? What do YOU think?
By the way.... A basic dental exam without insurance in Australia costs roughly $35 US. How cool is that?
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4 comments:
I would say from my experience with the kids dentist, who is also my dentist that the Aussie dentist is correct. I will double check with my sister's since they both work for dentists!!
Love ya and miss ya!!
BTW--Ash lost her first tooth a week ago! She was soooo excited!!
pissed about the $35 thing.
I'd say listen to your (current) dentist. I think the US has a tendency to overkill EVERYTHING. ;)
I'm voting for: go with your current dentist. It just makes sense that if the children are going to lose these teeth anyway, don't put a big investment into them. Worry about the permanent teeth when they come in.
My son's dentist doesn't put sealant on unless absolutely necessary. And, they don't clean his teeth, they just give a little lookie-loo and a polishing.
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