Kids Dentistry
in Petaling Jaya

Bring your child by the first birthday or within six months of the first tooth, then every six months. Fissure sealants are placed on the first permanent molars at about age six and the second molars at about twelve. Fluoride treatment is applied two to four times a year for children at higher risk of decay. Children with thumb sucking, mouth breathing or tongue habits between five and ten can be assessed for Myobrace. A baby tooth lost early may need a space maintainer, and nervous children are welcome. We plan visits around them.

Myobrace is a removable appliance worn for an hour or two during the day and overnight, intended to correct habits such as mouth breathing, tongue posture and thumb sucking while the jaws are still growing, in the hope of reducing how much orthodontic work is needed later. It suits a specific child: young enough that growth can still be influenced, with a habit that is genuinely driving the problem, and willing to wear it consistently.

It does not suit every child and it is not an alternative to braces for teeth that are already crowded. The evidence for this class of appliance is weaker than the evidence for conventional orthodontics, and the result depends almost entirely on wear, which is a lot to ask of a seven year old. We assess first and we will tell you if we think your child is not a candidate, because an appliance that is not worn achieves nothing and costs the same.

• Book the appointment for the morning, when a child is fresh, rather than at the end of a school day.
• Avoid the words that create the fear. No needle, no pain, no hurt, not even in reassurance, because a child hears the noun and not the negative.
• Do not promise it will not hurt. Promise instead that we will tell them everything before we do it and stop when they raise a hand, and then keep that promise.
• Bring them along to your own check-up first, so the room and the chair are familiar before anything is asked of them.
• Let us do the talking during the visit. A parent's own anxiety travels straight down the arm, and children read it long before they read us.

• Brush twice a day with an age-appropriate fluoride toothpaste, with a parent brushing or checking until about age eight.
• Keep sugary snacks and drinks to mealtimes and avoid a bottle or sweet drink at bedtime.
• Encourage water between meals and floss once the teeth touch each other.
• Use a mouthguard for contact sports, and come in promptly after a knock to a tooth.