Why and when to carry out silvering of milk teeth in children, what are the consequences of this procedure, what are the features and what does Dr. Komarovsky think about this? Read about all this in this article.
It is no news to anyone that teeth are an important component that helps to carry out the mechanical processing of food before it enters the gastrointestinal tract. Human teeth grow in two stages: the quantitative formula of milk teeth is twenty teeth, which are replaced by 32 molars within a few years.
Many parents believe that milk teeth are destined to fall out, which means that they do not need to be taken care of. But this common misconception is extremely wrong. Since they also require care and treatment, so as not to provoke the formation of malocclusion or damage to the newly appeared molars.
Why treat milk teeth in childhood?
To begin with, it is worth noting that children's teeth are less stable and therefore much more susceptible to various damages. And most often it is the parents of the child who are to blame for this, since a systematic visit to the dentist is a mandatory measure for the prevention of any diseases of the oral cavity.
If we do not consider the prenatal period of a child’s development, his heredity and the stresses that a future mother could experience during pregnancy, then we can say with confidence that the most common problem of dental disease in early childhood is improper and unbalanced nutrition.
It is not necessary to count on the fact that the problem with damaged teeth will be solved by itself, since damaged enamel is not only a breeding ground for infections, but also a place for the spread of lesions to other parts of the oral cavity.
There are several factors, the presence of which should convince parents that a trip to the children's doctor is essential:
- To begin with, it is worth considering that under the crown of the tooth there is a nerve, damage to which provokes the most excruciating pain. Therefore, if a child has caries , then it will progress from day to day, thereby delivering more and more discomfort to the baby, which in turn will aggravate the process of further recovery;
- In addition, all diseases of the oral cavity can somehow affect the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract and internal organs. For example, caries is an infection, the spread of which promises great trouble for the child's body, whose immunity is very poorly developed.
- Also, the formation of an initially incorrect or damaged tooth by any disease will later lead to the formation of a malocclusion. While with an even milk bite, maintaining the correct shape of the molars is not a problem.
- In a situation where not only the enamel is damaged, but also all the nearby layers of the tooth, it will have to be removed, and this will worsen the mechanical processing of food entering the digestive system. In early childhood, the child's body is not adapted to the processing of unground food, so the required amount of nutrients will not be absorbed from it. Such situations can lead to an insufficient content of any trace elements in the baby's body.
Silvering milk teeth
It is hard to overestimate the importance of the health of milk teeth, as they perform many functions, and their defeat can bring a lot of discomfort and disease to a child's life. In order for a trip to the dentist to be only a measure of preventive diagnostics, it is necessary to take care of the strength of the enamel and reduce the damaging factors that lie in wait for the baby’s oral cavity in the wrong diet, dirty objects that have fallen on the floor, or strong emotional experiences.
One of the effective ways to prevent the manifestation of various pathological processes on the teeth of children is their silvering.
The main contraindication to this method is the age category, since children who have not formed an occlusion, as a rule, from one to three years old, are not recommended to have their teeth silvered.
In addition, it should be borne in mind that this procedure is effective only at the initial stages of caries development, therefore it is necessary to carry out timely silvering of teeth for children, otherwise you will need to use the help of a qualified dentist.
One of the main advantages of teeth silvering is its sparing effect both on tooth enamel and on the whole organism as a whole. Indeed, compared with a drill, which brings a lot of suffering to the baby, this method of treatment is “atraumatic”.
In addition to the fact that silvering teeth in children is a treatment that does not bring any discomfort and suffering to the child, it should also be taken into account that silver nitrate not only has antibacterial properties, but also prevents further growth and reproduction of microbes in the oral cavity.
Consequences of the procedure
Silver plating is used to treat teeth that have previously been damaged by caries. As a rule, a 30% solution of silver nitrate is used for this procedure. Its functional feature is that it is able to create a protective film around the entire surface of the tooth, thereby protecting it.
To achieve a better effect, it is necessary to use modern preparations that contain not only silver nitrate, but also fluorine, which causes a slight penetration of the active substance into the tooth cavity. It can be said that fluoride-containing products are a kind of filter that prevents excessive amounts of silver nitrate from being absorbed by the tooth. But in order to prevent further development or the initial formation of caries, it is necessary to use both substances, but in moderate proportions.
The essence of the method itself lies in the fact that the action of active substances forms an impenetrable shell on the surface of the tooth, which consists of insoluble silver nitrate salts. These active substances are able to fight the spread of various harmful bacteria and reduce or completely eliminate their pathogenetic effect on the child's milk teeth. In addition, the active ingredients help to reduce the formation of plaque on the teeth and protect not only the enamel, but also softer tissues, such as dentin.
After this procedure, caries stops spreading. In addition, the resulting protective layer protects the teeth from the emergence of new lesions.
A significant disadvantage of silvering milk teeth in children is that after the procedure, the child's teeth can be stained in a dark color, which is unacceptable from an aesthetic point of view. But after the change of teeth to permanent ones, there are no traces of the previous silvering.
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The subtleties of the procedure for silvering teeth
The main misconception of many parents is the opinion that teeth silvering can solve absolutely all problems that are caused by enamel damage. But do not forget that:
- Teeth silvering is a measure of temporary prevention and cannot replace the full-fledged treatment of various diseases of the oral cavity. Therefore, trips to the dentist still remain an integral part of caring for the health of the baby;
- it is worth realizing that prevention cannot help in any way in cases where caries has begun to spread not only deep into the tooth, but also to its nearby areas. Therefore, if the disease has crossed the boundaries of primary manifestations, silvering of the teeth will be ineffective;
- the main contraindication is the procedure during the period when the development of caries led to the formation of a cavity inside the tooth, since the effect of silver nitrate on the dental nerve can cause the appearance of such a disease as pulpitis;
- it is best to carry out silvering of teeth only on their front surface, since after darkening it will be difficult to observe the further development of caries and the detection of foci of its progression.
- it is worth remembering that it is necessary to carry out the procedure of silvering teeth only after their thorough cleaning, since the presence of plaque will prevent the formation of a protective layer and the procedure itself will lose all meaning. Teeth cleaning should be carried out only by a pediatric dentist, since at home it is impossible to achieve the desired result;
- it is necessary to take into account the fact that silvering is just a preventive measure, albeit a successful one. Even if the procedure was carried out correctly, this does not replace further qualified supervision by a doctor. After silvering, it is necessary to contact a pediatric dentist at least once a quarter.
Opinion of Dr. Komarovsky:
