Children 3-4 years old have tooth decay, what to do?

This is an automatically translated article.

The article was professionally consulted by Specialist Doctor I Nguyen Trung Hau - Doctor of Odonto-Stomatology - Department of Medical Examination & Internal Medicine - Vinmec Da Nang International General Hospital.
Young children at the age of 3 - 4 years old are very susceptible to oral diseases such as gingivitis, molar tooth decay... If not treated in time, they will cause a lot of discomfort and affect their health. child's development.

1. Causes of tooth decay in 4-year-old children

In the set of baby teeth, molars are the hardest teeth, so many parents think that children will not be able to have molars and subjectively do not check when the baby shows pain. In fact, it is very difficult for molars to decay because it is located deep inside the oral cavity.
When a 3-year-old child or a 4-year-old child has molar caries, it is necessary to use specialized dental tools to detect caries. In life, the cause of 3-year-old children with molar tooth decay is quite a lot, but mainly because children eat a lot of sweets and have a poor oral hygiene regime.
According to statistics, up to 70% of 4-year-old children with tooth decay are caused by their parents feeding them sweets often. Most parents fulfill their children's wishes, thinking that their children must eat a lot to grow up, without knowing that the harmful effects of eating a lot of sweets are great.
On the other hand, many parents still think that 3-year-old children or 4-year-old children with molars will have no problem because at this stage they are baby teeth and will then be replaced by permanent teeth. This is a completely wrong concept that makes tooth decay in children become more and more common.
In addition, children's brushing habits are also one of the leading causes of molar tooth decay in children 3, 4 years old. At this stage, children are still young, so they will not be aware of brushing their teeth and keeping their teeth clean to avoid being attacked by bacteria. Therefore, children often clean their teeth in a careless way and often forget to brush their teeth before going to bed.

2. What are the harmful effects of 3- to 4-year-old children with molar tooth decay?

Molars are the hardest teeth and also have the most important chewing function, both in adults and children. In particular, the 6th molar is the first permanent tooth that will erupt when the child is 6 years old. Therefore, this molar tooth is also at greatest risk of decay.
The process of eating very much needs the function of chewing, tearing and grinding the food of the molars before they are transferred to the stomach for digestion. If a 3- to 4-year-old child has caries in his molars, it will affect the digestion process and the type of food. This in the long run will make children anorexic, skipping meals, in pain.
In particular, if a 3-year-old child has caries in his molars, bacteria will attack and destroy the teeth from the outside to the inside and need to be extracted to help the child painlessly. The extraction of baby molars when the child is underage will cause the gums to dry out and the permanent molars will be very difficult to grow in or the newly erupting molars may overwhelm the front teeth and affect the structure of the teeth. whole teeth.

3. How to cure 3- to 4-year-old children with molar tooth decay?

3-year-olds or 4-year-olds with molar caries can be treated with a variety of methods depending on the stage of the disease. In the case of early decay, the remineralization method can be used. This 4-year-old tooth decay treatment is quite simple to regenerate the damaged tooth tissue.
If a 3-year-old or 4-year-old child has severe molar decay and the structure of the tooth has been chipped and broken a lot, the dentist can perform a deep filling for the child. This method can not only be performed with adults but even a 4-year-old child with molar tooth decay can also be performed to help reconstruct the shape and preserve the maximum real tooth tissue.
In case a 3-year-old or 4-year-old child has caries in the pulp, the treatment at this time is to treat the pulp before filling the cavity. This method will take a lot of time and cost, so when the baby shows signs of tooth decay, parents need to take the baby to the doctor and take timely measures.

4. How to prevent dental caries in children?

In order not to have to use the methods of treating tooth decay for 4-year-old children, which are often quite complicated, parents should not only limit their children's intake of sweets, but also should pay attention to the process of taking care of their children's oral health.
When children are not able to brush their own teeth and are aware of oral care, parents can help children brush their teeth twice a day and rinse their mouth after eating so that bacteria in the mouth cannot attack and cause deep wounds to develop. than.
In fact, there have been many cases of 3-, 4-year-old children with molar tooth decay and loss of molars too early, causing the adjacent teeth to fall into the space of the missing tooth and affect the structure of the whole tooth. This not only affects the function of chewing and grinding food, but also affects the aesthetics of the child's face. Therefore, when a 4-year-old child has tooth decay, it is best for parents to take the child to the dental clinic to be examined and treated in the most timely manner.
At this age, in addition to dental problems, the baby will likely have many other diseases. At the stage of 3-6 years old, children are very active, love to observe and explore. The baby's health is also very easily affected by environmental factors, very susceptible to diseases of the mouth, ears - nose - throat, eyesight, nutrition, height, hepatitis B... like adults. Doctors recommend that from the age of 4, children should have regular health checkups once a year like adults to promptly detect abnormal health problems. In particular, when the baby has symptoms of fatigue, anorexia, or stops eating, the child should immediately go to a specialist for advice, monitoring and treatment.
Vinmec offers a children's general health check-up package for children under 18 years old with comprehensive examination services. The baby will be examined by pediatricians with a full range of specialties: cardiology, endocrinology, neurology, hepatobiliary, psychology, nutrition... and supported by specialized specialties. as Regenerative Medicine treatment and rehabilitation for children with autism. In Vietnam, there are very few hospitals with full specialized specialties like Vinmec's Pediatrics department, providing the best treatment results.
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