New Patients
We love seeing babies in our office! The AAPD recommends that children establish a relationship with a pediatric dentist by age 1. Our pediatric dentists complete our infant exams. With dental visits every 6 months, your child will have had 5 visits with our dentists by age 3 years. Around this age, we gauge your child’s readiness for a visit with our hygienists. At this visit, your child will sit independently and a thorough cleaning will be done by a hygienist followed by a comprehensive examination by one of our doctors. We will take x-rays when the spaces between the teeth close or by age 5 years, whichever occurs first. We allow parents to accompany their children throughout the visit, and advance the appointment at a pace that matches the comfort level of your child.
Parents often wonder what to say to their small child prior to their first dental visit. In brief, keep the mention of your child’s appointment calm, casual and positive. Many parents with small children find it helpful to tell their child that the dentist is a doctor who takes care of teeth to make sure that they stay clean and healthy. Some children may be apprehensive before the appointment. This is completely normal and we take care of nervous children all the time!
If you are being referred to our office by a pediatrician, family dentist or another pediatric dentist, please inform our staff of your child’s existing dental concerns. Any diagnostic x-rays that were taken by a previous dentist should be obtained and forwarded to us prior to your child’s appointment.
When you bring your child here, we welcome you to sit near your child and observe their first dental experience here with us. We like to form a positive relationship with the children and ask that you allow us to have your child’s full attention so that we can make this a fun experience. by using positive, encouraging words and phrases we can help even an apprehensive child have an enjoyable visit with us.