Pediatric Dental Checkups

You want what’s best for your child – and we do, too! When you and your child visit our St. Pete dental office for the first time, our team will make sure that it’s a fun and productive experience for both you and your little one. Remember, once your child turns three, they are ready to join the Grand Central Smiles Family!

The American Academy of Pediatric Dentists (AAPD) recommends that all children be seen for dental checkups at least once every six months. Regular and consistent visits allow our team to closely monitor new changes in your child’s mouth and ensure that you, as a parent, have the information you need to promote continued oral health in your child. Please note, if we identify oral health or orthodontic problems, we may recommend more frequent appointments.

Teeth-Strengthening Mineral Treatments

Minerals are healthy for both the body and the teeth! Our teeth mineral treatments are safe and effective in decreasing the number of cavities in children. Our kids dentist will often recommend mineral treatments along with dental sealants to protect your child’s teeth. These minerals act as a shield for the tooth’s outer enamel and can actually reverse early dental decay in some children.

Dental Sealants for Kids

Did you know that 88% of cavities in American school-aged children are caused by food and bacteria being caught in rear molars? Protective dental sealants are thin coats of plastic painted onto your child’s back teeth to protect their deep grooves and depressions from accumulating bacteria and food particles.

At Grand Central Smiles, our kids dental team typically applies a pediatric dental sealant to your child’s back teeth, premolars and molars. The sealant will last for several years, but we will continue to check it during your child’s regular dental appointments.

Tooth-Colored Dental Fillings & Crowns

Simple cavities can rapidly transform into dangerous and painful infections that could require extractions. Fortunately, we can save both baby and permanent teeth using discreet, effective tooth-colored fillings and crowns.

Mercury-free tooth-colored fillings and dental crowns are tooth-shaped coverings cemented to a badly damaged tooth to restore the shape and functionality of the tooth. We may recommend a crown for your child’s tooth if it has a large cavity, was broken or chipped due to trauma, or if the tooth hasn’t developed correctly.

Gentle Tooth Extractions

We may recommend a tooth extraction for a number of reasons, including:

• Cavities & infections. Infected or cavity-riddled teeth may need to be pulled, especially if they are baby teeth.
• Trauma or injury. Severely cracked or broken teeth are sometimes too damaged to save.
• Crowding. Extra teeth or teeth crowding could impact otherwise healthy neighboring teeth. In these cases, we may recommend an extraction.

Wisdom Teeth

At the earliest, wisdom teeth are removed in the mid-teen years, but third molars do not completely finish developing until closer to about 30 years of age. Of course, not all wisdom teeth need to be extracted – but some do. In many situations, it’s best to pull the wisdom teeth before they jeopardize your child’s smile as a whole. If your child’s wisdom tooth growth can cause damage to neighboring teeth, or cannot fully erupt, we may consider extraction.

We will take an x-ray of your child’s entire jaw, so we can see the size, location, and developmental stage of the wisdom teeth in consideration.

Schedule Your Child’s Dental Appointment Today

Grand Central Smiles is your choice for top pediatric dental care. Call us today to schedule your child’s dental appointment!