4 year old first dentist visit

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A Child's First Dental Visit Fact Sheet

When should your child first see a dentist? You can take your child at a younger age, but experts recommend taking him or her within 6 months of the first tooth coming in (erupting), or by about 12 months at the latest.

At this time, the dentist can give you information on:

Baby bottle tooth decay

Infant feeding practices

Mouth cleaning

Pacifier habits

Finger-sucking habits

Prepare your child

If possible, schedule morning appointments so young children are alert and fresh.

Prepare a preschooler or older child for the visit by giving him or her a general idea of what to expect. Explain why it is important to go to the dentist. Build excitement and understanding.

Prepare yourself

Discuss your questions and concerns with the dentist. Remember that your feeling toward dental visits can be quite different from your child's. Be honest with your view of the dentist. If you have dental anxieties, be careful not to relate those fears or dislikes to your child. Parents need to give moral support by staying calm while in the dental exam room. Children can pick up parents' anxieties and become anxious themselves.

Prepare the dentist

At the first visit, give the dentist your child's complete health history. For a restoration visit, such as getting a cavity filled, tell the dentist if your child tends to be stubborn, defiant, anxious, or fearful in other situations.

Watch how your child reacts. Many parents are able to guess how their child will respond and should tell the dentist. Certain behaviors may be linked to your child's age:

10 to 24 months. Some securely attached children may get upset when taken from their parents for an exam.

2 to 3 years. A securely attached child may be able to cope with a brief separation from parents. In a 2-year-old, "no" may be a common response.

3 years. Three-year-olds may not be OK being apart from a parent when having a dental procedure such as getting a cavity filled. This is because most 3-year-olds are not socially mature enough to separate from parents.

4 years. Most children should be able to sit in another room from parents for exams and treatment procedures.

The first visit

Your child's first dental visit is to help your child feel comfortable with the dentist. The first dental visit is recommended by 12 months of age, or within 6 months of the first tooth coming in. The first visit often lasts 30 to 45 minutes. Depending on your child's age, the visit may include a full exam of the teeth, jaws, bite, gums, and oral tissues to check growth and development. If needed, your child may also have a gentle cleaning. This includes polishing teeth and removing any plaque, tartar, and stains. The dentist may show you and your child proper home cleaning such as flossing, and advise you on the need for fluoride. Baby teeth fall out, so X-rays aren’t often done. But your child's dentist may recommend X-rays to diagnose decay, depending on your child's age. X-rays are also used to see if the root of a jammed baby tooth may be affecting an adult tooth. In general, it is best that young children not have dental X-rays unless absolutely needed.

The second visit

Just like adults, children should see the dentist every 6 months. Some dentists may schedule visits more often, such as every 3 months. This can build comfort and confidence in the child. More frequent visits can also help keep an eye on a development problem.

Protect your children's teeth at home

 Here are some tips to protect your children's teeth:

Before teeth come in, clean gums with a clean, damp cloth.

Start brushing with a small, soft-bristled toothbrush and a very small amount of toothpaste (the size of a grain of rice) when your child's first tooth appears. Use a pea-sized dab of fluoridated toothpaste after 3 years of age. This is when the child is old enough to spit out the toothpaste after brushing.

Prevent baby bottle tooth decay. Don't give children a bottle of milk, juice, or sweetened liquid at bedtime or when put down to nap.

Limit the time your child has a bottle. Your child should empty a bottle in 5 to 6 minutes or less.

Help your child brush his or her own teeth until age 7 or 8. Have the child watch you brush, and follow the same brushing pattern to reduce missed spots.

Limit foods and treats that increase tooth decay. This includes hard or sticky candies, fruit leather, and sweetened drinks and juice. Offer fruit rather than juice. The fiber in fruit tends to scrape the teeth clean. Juice just exposes the teeth to sugar.

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When Should Baby Visit the Dentist for the First Time?

Medical review policy, latest update:, when to schedule baby's first dental visit, how to choose a dentist for your child, read this next, what happens at baby's first dentist visit, tips to make your child’s dentist visit easier, how often to visit the dentist.

Based on how your toddler’s teeth look, your dentist will let you know when to make the next visit. Most experts recommend that toddlers see the dentist about every six months — as long as there are no major problems. So don’t forget to schedule your child’s second appointment on your way out the door!

What to Expect the First Year , 3rd Edition, Heidi Murkoff. What to Expect the Second Year , Heidi Murkoff. WhatToExpect.com, Toddler Dental Care , March 2019. WhatToExpect.com, Is Your Toddler Teething? , April 2020. WhatToExpect.com, Preventing Cavities and Keeping Baby's Teeth Healthy , April 2020. WhatToExpect.com, Brushing Baby's Teeth , July 2020. American Academy of Pediatrics, Baby's First Tooth: 7 Facts Parents Should Know , November 2020. American Academy of Pediatrics, Good Oral Health Starts Early , November 2020 American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry, Frequently Asked Questions , 2021. American Dental Association, Taking Care of Your Child’s Smile , May 2014.

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How to Prepare Your Child for Their First Dental Visit

Verywell / Madelyn Goodnight

What to Expect

Choosing a dentist.

• Getting Ready For The Visit

Preparing as a Parent

One of the most frequently asked questions I get as a Pediatric Dentist is, “When should I bring my baby in for their first dental visit?”

The Academy of Pediatric Dentistry recommends that a child should visit the dentist when the first tooth appears or no later than their first birthday. While it may sound early, starting at that age will start your baby on a path for great oral health and prevent a number of dental problems that can occur during childhood.

The first visit gives parents a chance to become educated on how to properly care for their child's teeth and gives children a chance to become comfortable with the dental environment at an early age.

At the first visit, the dentist will examine your baby's mouth to make sure everything is growing and developing properly and will check for dental caries, tongue ties, and any signs of injuries.

The dentist will typically tell you everything you need to know to keep your child's teeth healthy including:

• What kind of toothpaste and toothbrush to use
• Brushing and flossing techniques
• How to relieve teething discomfort
• Which foods and drinks cause cavities
• Answers to questions about pacifier use and thumb-sucking.

The examination and cleaning itself can take just a few minutes, but most of the time is spent on making the child feel comfortable and educating the parents. You should not expect the overall visit to take a long time.

The first step is finding a Pediatric Dentist for your child. Pediatric Dentists have two to three additional years of training after dental school during which they extensively study child development, behavior management of patients from infancy to adolescence, and how best to work with special needs children.

Most Pediatric Dentists will aim to provide a fun environment with toys, stickers, TVs, games, yummy flavored toothpaste, and staff that enjoy working with children. When children are having fun, they gain trust in the dentist and staff, and will often enjoy their visits and look forward to their next appointment.

Where to Find a Dentist

To find a Pediatric Dentist in your area, you can Google nearby pediatric dentists, talk to other parents you know for recommendations, and ask your child's pediatrician or your own dentist. If you have dental insurance, you can search for a Pediatric Dentist through your list of participating providers.

Getting Ready For Your Child's Visit

When you have decided on an office, call them to schedule a visit. Young children tend to do their best in the morning when they are fresh and full of energy. Avoid scheduling appointments late in the day or close to nap times when children can be groggy or cranky.

You can inquire if it is possible for you and your child to come to the office for a tour and to meet the doctor before the actual day of the checkup. If your child has any special needs, discuss it with the staff member that schedules your appointment. The dentist will often want a little extra time scheduled for this.

If there is something in particular that keeps your child calm and happy (a song they like to hear, a video they like to watch or simply a color they like), let the dentist know so they can try to incorporate that into the visit.

Mental Preparation

Once you have an appointment scheduled, start preparing your child for the visit. Children learn best when they are having fun. You can practice giving their stuffed animal a checkup with a toy mirror.

Your child can bring that same stuffed animal to the dental visit to get a check-up by the dentist. Read books to them. I recommend:

• Show Me Your Smile! A Visit to the Dentist (Dora the Explorer)
• Dentist Trip (Peppa Pig)
• Elmo Visits the Dentist by P.J. Shaw

You can also watch one of the many YouTube videos about going to the dentist, such as Daniel Tiger's .

Put Them At Ease

When talking to your child about their upcoming trip to the dentist, you can assure them that there are no shots at this visit and that the dentist will simply examine and brush their teeth and talk to them about how to keep their teeth healthy.

Let them know that the dentist will show them all of the tools and explain all of the procedures before starting. You can also plan a treat (not candy or junk food) such as a trip to the park or toy store should they need a little extra motivation.

Anticipating Follow Up Visits

Once you've completed your first visit, it's time to start preparing your child for their second visit! Discuss the visit with your child and remind them of the positive things that happened such as:

• There were no shots
• Nothing hurt
• The toothpaste tasted great
• The toothbrush tickled
• The dentist counted all of your teeth and now we know how many teeth you have
• You got prizes and a new toothbrush at the end
• Next time we go there, we'll get these fun prizes all over again!

To prepare yourself, come on time, if possible a few minutes earlier to fill out any registration and consent forms that may be needed. Many offices have their registration forms on their website so you can fill them out in advance.

Give your dentist a complete health history of your child. If your child is taking any medications, have a list of the medications and dosages. Have your child's pediatrician's contact information available.

If you have any particular questions that you want the dentist to address, write them down so you don't forget to ask them if the dentist doesn't bring those topics up.

It is also important to have reasonable expectations of your child. During the visit, some children may open their mouths willingly and enjoy the experience, while some will not, just as some do not enjoy getting haircuts or wearing seatbelts. Luckily, with preparation and sticking to a regular recall schedule (typically every six months), the visits will get easier and more enjoyable each time.

Many children that may start out fearful or anxious can become patients that love going to the dentist once they've been a few times.  

By Rashmi Ambewadikar, DDS  Rashmi Ambewadikar, DDS is a pediatric dentist practicing in Queens, New York and is the owner of Astoria Smiles Pediatric Dentistry. 

503-477-9911

What Is the Youngest Age to Go to the Dentist?

  503-477-9911

It’s never too early to start thinking about your baby’s dental care. Encouraging good dental habits at a young age can set your child up for a lifetime of healthy teeth and gums. While you can start cleaning your baby’s teeth on your own at home as soon as their teeth begin to appear, knowing when to take your child to the dentist can be less clear.

Below, you’ll learn when a child should see the dentist for the first time, how to prepare for your child’s first dentist appointment and what to expect at the office. Keep reading to discover how to take the best care of your child’s oral health.

In this guide, we’ll cover:

• When Should A Child See the Dentist for the First Time
• Why It Is Important for Children to Visit the Dentist Early On
• How to Prepare Your Child for the Dentist
• What Happens at a Baby’s First Dentist Appointment

When Should a Child See the Dentist for the First Time?

A child should have their first dentist appointment  by the time they’re 1 year old , according to the American Dental Association (ADA). Once a baby starts teething, they should see the dentist within six months of their first tooth coming in. Because infants usually  begin teething between 3 and 6 months old , a baby’s first dentist visit typically happens right around their first birthday.

Dentists take care of more than just teeth — a dental checkup can be beneficial to your infant’s oral health regardless of whether they have teeth yet or not. Even if your child begins teething later than the average age, you can still take them to see the dentist before they develop a tooth. If your child has not gotten a tooth by the time of their first birthday, you should go ahead and bring them in for a dentist visit anyway.

Of course, every child is different, and the answer to “When should I take my child to the dentist?” can vary. Although experts recommend taking your baby to see a pediatric dentist around their first birthday, there is no need to distress if you miss this milestone. Many parents don’t quite hit the one-year mark. It’s common for a young child’s first dentist appointment to happen at age 2, 3 or even 4.

Regardless of when you choose to schedule your child’s first dental exam, make sure you book the appointment with a  reputable board certified pediatric dentist . Just like you would take your baby to a pediatrician for their primary care physician, taking your child to a pediatric dentist ensures they see a qualified professional with expertise in working with children.

Pediatric dentists are specialists who have received extra training beyond dental school to learn how to treat children and provide them with the best experience and care possible. A reliable pediatric dentist will be able to adapt to your child’s age, developmental readiness and temperament to make their first dentist visit comfortable and enjoyable.

Why Is It Important for Children to Go to the Dentist Early On?

Now that you know when you should schedule your baby’s first dentist appointment, it’s time to discuss why you should make it. Discover the importance of a child’s first dental visit with the following advantages:

1. Establish Healthy Oral Care Habits

Children should see the dentist early in their lives because it’s essential to form good oral hygiene habits from the very first tooth. Even before your baby gets their first tooth, you can introduce them to healthy oral hygiene practices by routinely wiping their gums with a damp cloth. Once you start to notice teeth popping in through your child’s gums, begin brushing their gums with a soft-bristled toothbrush. Those practices and regular dental visits will set your child up with healthy dental hygiene habits early on.

2. Prevent Tooth Decay

Visiting the dentist early in life can help your child avoid tooth decay and other oral health problems. About  20% of children experience untreated tooth decay , but you can help prevent this issue by taking your baby to the dentist.

3. Protect Overall Health

Taking your child to the dentist at an early age can help preserve their oral health and general health. Introducing your child to good oral hygiene early on will ensure they have healthy gums and teeth, which will allow them to chew and speak comfortably.

Teaching your children to take care of their oral health early can also help them avoid serious health issues later in life. Concerns like heart disease, diabetes and osteoporosis have a  strong link with oral health . Taking the initiative to schedule a dental exam for your child early can protect their oral and overall health for years to come.

4. Provide Parental Education

An early dentist visit can benefit the parents just as much as their infant. At the appointment, your dentist can show you  how to clean your baby’s teeth  and gums properly. They can also supply you with clear instructions on how to prevent tooth decay and other dental problems. Your dentist can address other key childhood dental concerns throughout the appointment based on your infant’s needs, as well.

In particular, your dentist can provide you with information about these topics during your baby’s first dental exam:

• Mouth cleaning
• Infant feeding practices
• Baby bottle tooth decay
• Pacifier habits
• Finger-sucking habits
• Any other infant dental issues you may have questions about

5. Create Positive Associations

Helping your child grow accustomed to visiting the dentist at an early age will teach them that going to the dentist’s office is nothing to worry about.  Approximately 36% of people  experience some anxiety or fear about visiting the dentist. But you can minimize the chances of your child developing these negative feelings by helping them create positive associations with the dentist’s office.

The memories we create in our earliest years can impact us for the rest of our lives, so you should provide your child with fond memories of going to the dentist. At your child’s initial dental exams, the dentist will not do much poking or prodding. Instead, the appointments will be used more as opportunities for your child to become comfortable at the office.

These first few visits will allow your child to familiarize themselves with the staff and build trust with them. Only once your child is comfortable, the dentist will take a look at their mouth. This positive dentist-patient relationship will help your child feel more relaxed about visiting the dentist in the future. Who knows — they may even grow to look forward to each dental appointment!

How Do I Prepare My Child for the Dentist?

While your child’s first dentist appointment may seem daunting, you can make the visit feel more manageable by preparing for it. Being well-prepared will put both you and your child at ease. To help your child’s first dentist visit go smoothly, here are tips on how to prepare your child, yourself and your dentist.

How to Prepare Your Child

The first step to preparing your child for visiting the dentist is to schedule an early morning appointment when your child is fresh and at their most alert. You also want to ensure your child feels as safe and comfortable as possible about going to the dentist’s office. The best way to help your child feel calm is to remain calm yourself. Your child will pick up on your positive view of the dentist and most likely react similarly.

Of course, preparation for visiting the dentist depends on your child’s age, and an infant will not understand as much as a toddler. But babies can sense your tone of voice and feelings, so you should seem happy and excited when talking about their dental appointment. This positivity can have a significant impact on how your child feels about seeing the dentist.

If your child is old enough to have a discussion about seeing the dentist, try to give them a basic idea of what to expect at the visit. Explain in simple terms why going to the dentist is important and how it can help them grow up strong and healthy. You could also read age-appropriate books about the dentist with them to help them relax and alleviate the fear of the unknown.

During your discussion, make sure you choose your words carefully so you don’t frighten your child unnecessarily. Avoid using words that insinuate seeing the dentist will be painful, such as “shot,” “drilling” or “hurt.” Treating a visit to the dentist like it’s not a big deal will signal to your child there’s nothing to be afraid of.

Instead, use positive, non-threatening words to describe in plain language what the dentist will do during the appointment. Use phrases that will make sense to your child, such as telling them the dentist will “brush their teeth,” “count their teeth,” “clean their mouth” and “take pictures of their teeth.” Having some idea of what to expect can help your child feel more at ease with this new experience.

How to Prepare Yourself

Even though you won’t be the one receiving the dental exam, you’ll still need to prepare yourself for your child’s first dentist visit. Discuss any concerns you may have with the dentist before the day of the appointment. Come prepared with a list of any oral health questions you want to ask the dentist so you don’t forget anything important. 

If you have your own dental anxieties, be careful not to let those fears or negative associations influence your child’s view of the dentist. Because children can quickly pick up on their parent’s anxieties and become worried themselves, you can provide moral support by appearing relaxed and calm throughout the appointment.

How to Prepare the Dentist

For your child’s first dentist visit, you will need to provide the dentist with a record of your child’s health history to go over before the appointment. You will also want to let the dentist know if your child tends to be anxious, fearful, stubborn or defiant in certain situations. Depending on your child’s age, you may also alert the dentist of any behavioral or temperamental issues that may occur.

In general, these are the main problems linked with children’s ages:

• Infants:  Many babies under 1 year old are highly attached to their parents and do not react well to being removed from their parent’s side for the dental exam. To alleviate this, most infants will stay sitting on their parents’ lap during the dental exam.
• Toddlers:  By the time they reach 3 years, most children can cope with being away from their parents for a brief time. But they may not deal well with being separated for the entire duration of a dental procedure like getting a cavity filled. Therefore, we always allow (and encourage) parents to be in the room during the cleaning and exam.
• Four-year-olds:  Most children are able to be apart from their parents for dental exams and treatment procedures by the time they’re 4 years old. However, it is still important for parents to be present so they can listen to any feedback from the dental team.

What Happens at a Baby’s First Dentist Appointment?

Knowing what to expect at your baby’s first dentist appointment can help you be better prepared. The goal of a first dentist visit is mainly to introduce your child to the office and get them comfortable with the idea of dentistry. The appointment will take less than an hour and show your child the dentist’s office is a safe place to visit .

At Sprout Pediatric Dentistry & Orthodontics, a  typical first dentist appointment  includes:

• A tour:  To get started, the dentist will show your child the dentist’s chair and the dental tools used for a checkup. They’ll briefly explain what happens when they look at your child’s mouth and teeth. For children who are old enough to understand, having a conversation about the exam and meeting the staff helps them feel calmer and safer. If your child is an infant, a short tour is still beneficial for helping parents to become familiar with the office and staff.
• An exam:  After the tour, the dentist will begin the exam portion of the visit. Children under 2 years of age will usually sit in their parent’s lap in the dentist’s chair to make them feel more comfortable. During the exam, the dentist will count and assess each tooth along with your child’s gums, bite and jaw.
• A thorough cleaning:  Each exam includes a routine cleaning, which may be very quick for babies with only a few teeth. For your child’s first visit, the dentist will use a regular toothbrush to complete the cleaning. Using a toothbrush instead of dental tools creates an opportunity to demonstrate proper at-home brushing techniques. Older children who can handle sitting in the dentist’s chair by themselves will receive a cleaning with a soft rubber polishing brush. That tool provides delicate teeth with a gentle, deep clean.
• A fluoride treatment:  The dentist might apply a fluoride treatment to help protect your child’s enamel and prevent cavities. Although the treatment used to be applied by placing Styrofoam trays filled with fluoride into patients’ mouths, dentists now simply paint a drop or two of a fluoride varnish treatment onto patients’ teeth with a brush. This method is far more comfortable than the old one, takes mere seconds and allows your child to eat or drink immediately following their appointment.

Schedule Your Child’s First Dentist Appointment With Sprout Pediatric Dentistry & Orthodontics

If you’re looking for a friendly, caring dentist office to take your child to, schedule an appointment with Sprout Pediatric Dentistry & Orthodontics. At Sprout, we’re dedicated to providing the highest quality pediatric dental care in a warm and welcoming environment that kids will actually look forward to visiting. We even offer the option of watching a movie during dental exams and cleanings to help put children at ease.

Along with a thorough exam and cleaning, the Sprout team will offer oral hygiene tips like how to brush your baby’s teeth so you can ensure your child stays healthy in between visits.  Our dental team  loves children and their families and looks forward to becoming your regular pediatric dental choice. No referrals are needed for children to visit our office, so you can  book your appointment  today!

Dr. Dana  grew up in Portland and went to Temple University in Philadelphia, PA for dental school. She then moved to Anchorage, AK for her  residency in Pediatric Dentistry . Dr. Dana takes a holistic approach to pediatric dentistry & is able to use her own parenting experience to sympathize and understand each family’s unique dynamic.

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Health Encyclopedia

A child's first dental visit fact sheet.

When should your child first see a dentist? You can take your child at a younger age, but experts recommend taking your child within 6 months of the first tooth coming in (erupting), or by about 12 months at the latest.

At this time, the dentist can give you information on:

Baby bottle tooth decay

Infant feeding practices

Mouth cleaning

Pacifier habits

Finger-sucking habits

Prepare your child

If possible, schedule morning appointments so young children are alert and fresh.

Prepare a preschooler or older child for the visit by giving them a general idea of what to expect. You can tell them about the exam room, the instruments they might see, the face masks the dentist and hygienist may wear, and the bright exam light. Explain why it is important to go to the dentist. Build excitement and understanding.

Prepare yourself

Discuss your questions and concerns with the dentist. Remember that your feeling toward dental visits can be quite different from your child's. Be honest with your view of the dentist. If you have dental anxieties, be careful not to relate those fears or dislikes to your child. Parents need to give moral support by staying calm while in the dental exam room. Children can pick up parents' anxieties and become anxious themselves.

Prepare the dentist

If you don't know the dentist, interview the person first to see if they sound right for your child's needs and personality. At the first visit, give the dentist your child's complete health history. For a restoration visit, such as getting a cavity filled, tell the dentist if your child tends to be stubborn, defiant, anxious, or fearful in other situations. Ask the dentist how they handle such behavior. If you aren't comfortable with the answer, find another dentist.

Watch how your child reacts. Many parents are able to guess how their child will respond and should tell the dentist. Certain behaviors may be linked to your child's age:

10 to 24 months. Some securely attached children may get upset when taken from their parents for an exam.

2 to 3 years. A securely attached child may be able to cope with a brief separation from parents. In a 2-year-old, "no" may be a common response.

3 years. Three-year-olds may not be OK being apart from a parent when having a dental procedure, such as getting a cavity filled. This is because most 3-year-olds are not socially mature enough to separate from parents.

4 years. Most children should be able to sit in another room from parents for exams and treatment procedures.

The first visit

Your child's first dental visit is to help your child feel comfortable with the dentist. The first dental visit is recommended by 12 months of age, or within 6 months of the first tooth coming in. The first visit often lasts 30 to 45 minutes. Depending on your child's age, the visit may include a full exam of the teeth, jaws, bite, gums, and oral tissues to check growth and development. If needed, your child may also have a gentle cleaning. This includes polishing teeth and removing any plaque, tartar, and stains. The dentist may show you and your child correct home cleaning, such as flossing, and advise you on the need for fluoride. Baby teeth fall out, so X-rays aren’t often done. But your child's dentist may recommend X-rays to diagnose decay, depending on your child's age. X-rays are also used to see if the root of a jammed baby tooth may be affecting an adult tooth. In general, it is best that young children not have dental X-rays unless absolutely needed.

The second visit

Just like adults, children should see the dentist every 6 months. Some dentists may schedule visits more often, such as every 3 months. This can build comfort and confidence in the child. More frequent visits can also help keep an eye on a developmental problem. Talk to your dentist about payment options if the cost of dental care is a problem for you.

Protect your children's teeth at home

 Here are some tips to protect your children's teeth:

Before teeth come in, clean gums with a clean, damp cloth.

Start brushing with a small, soft-bristled toothbrush and a very small amount of fluoride toothpaste (the size of a grain of rice) when your child's first tooth appears. Use a pea-sized dab of fluoridated toothpaste after 3 years of age. Children should spit after brushing. Encourage them not to swallow extra toothpaste.

Prevent baby bottle tooth decay. Only put breastmilk or formula in bottles. Don't give children a bottle of juice, soft drinks, or sweetened liquid.

Limit the time your child has a bottle. Children should finish bottles before going to sleep.

Encourage your child to use a cup around their first birthday.

Help your child brush their teeth until age 7 or 8. Have the child watch you brush and follow the same brushing pattern to reduce missed spots.

Limit foods and treats that increase tooth decay. This includes hard or sticky candies, fruit leather, and sweetened drinks and juice. Offer fruit rather than juice. The fiber in fruit tends to scrape the teeth clean. Juice just exposes the teeth to sugar.

Medical Reviewers:

• Jessica Gotwals RN BSN MPH
• Michael Kapner MD
• Rita Sather RN
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When To Take Your Child To The Dentist For The First Time

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Medically Reviewed By Colgate Global Scientific Communications

As a new parent, your baby isn't the only one experiencing the world for the first time. You're experiencing a lot of new things, too! Like going to regular dental visits... for someone else . Even if you feel comfortable and confident about your own oral health, a lot of questions may start to arise surrounding dental visits for your little one. If you're unsure of when to take your child to the dentist for the first time and what to expect from your visit, we'll give you some key info about caring for your infant's oral hygiene that you can both smile about.

When Should You Plan Your Child's First Visit?

If you see a tooth, it's time! That's right; you should take your little one to the dentist as soon as their first tooth comes in. The American Dental Association (ADA) says that usually happens at about 6 months old. Regardless of when your child's first tooth erupts, don't wait until after their first birthday to make an appointment.

Also, if you notice anything that looks abnormal in your child's mouth (white spots, lesions, bleeding, etc.), make an appointment right away.

Why Start Taking Your Child to the Dentist So Early?

According to the American Association of Pediatric Dentists (AAPD) , tooth decay affects nearly 1 in 5 children under 5. By catching any developing conditions early, your dental professional will be able to diagnose and treat them effectively. They will do what they can to ensure your baby is set up to have a healthy smile for life. Your pediatric dentist will be able to check for tooth decay, injuries, and other issues during your visit and will be able to track changes in your baby's mouth as they age.

Choosing a Pediatric Dentist

You may want to bring your child to your personal dentist, but there are various reasons to go to a pediatric dentist instead. They specialize in growing children with little mouths and tend to know how to make a frightening experience for some kids a lot of fun.

The special-sized dental equipment for exams is also important. The exam room decor should be appealing to youngsters too, like brightly colored wall paint and engaging murals. Games, kids' magazines, and perhaps a fish tank in the waiting area go a long way toward easing uncertainty and apprehension.

Pediatric dentists work hard to keep the smiles of kids bright and healthy. When a dental visit is a positive experience, children may be happy to return every six months for their checkup. And for that, you will be smiling, too.

How To Prepare for Your Baby’s First Dentist Visit

Even before your baby's pearly whites make their first appearance, it's important to gently clean their gums with a cloth (or gauze) and water, especially after breastfeeding. You can use a soft toothbrush designed for children's mouths as well, but don't start using fluoridated toothpaste until your child is at least 2 years old. When teeth are forming, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) states that fluoride use can cause fluorosis. Fluorosis can cause spots on teeth, discoloration, and in severe forms, can even create pits in teeth. Having a gum-cleaning routine will accustom your child very early to a daily dental routine and help your infant be more comfortable at their first dentist visit.

Other steps you can take to prepare for your baby's first visit include:

• Showing videos to your child about first dental visits, so it's not an entirely new experience.
• Filling out paperwork ahead of your visit, so you and your baby aren't stuck in the waiting room for too long.
• Coming up with a list of questions you may have about practicing good oral hygiene for your baby.

What To Expect When You Take Your Baby to the Dentist

During your baby's first visit, you'll be in the room with them. If they are squirming or won't sit still in the dental chair, the dental professional may even have them sit on your lap to make the experience as comfortable as possible. They will perform a routine examination, looking for tooth decay, and checking your child's gums, jaw, and bite, and looking for frenum issues or other problems that may affect teeth or speech patterns. Then they'll carefully clean your baby's teeth and gums, advise you on how best you can properly care for your child's mouth, and then they will answer any questions you may have.

Most dental professionals recommend coming in for appointments at least twice a year, but ask your pediatric dentist what they recommend for your child's individual needs. There's a lot to think about as a new parent, and a pediatric dentist will be able to guide you and your child in the coming years toward a lifetime of good oral health. Happy brushing!

Oral Care Center articles are reviewed by an oral health medical professional. This information is for educational purposes only. This content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Always seek the advice of your dentist, physician or other qualified healthcare provider. 

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When should your child first visit the dentist?

Most American children see their family dentist for the first time well after their second birthday, far later than recommended by dental professionals.

The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD) recommends that children visit the dentist for the first time by age 1, or within six months of the date their first tooth erupts. Primary teeth typically begin growing in around 6 months of age.

Why caring for baby teeth is important

According to the AAPD, primary (or “baby”) teeth in should stay in place until they’re lost naturally. This is because these teeth serve several important purposes:

• They help children chew properly.
• They’re involved in speech development.
• They save space for permanent teeth.
• A healthy smile helps children feel good about how they look.

Preparing for your child’s first dentist visit

If you begin taking your children to the dentist around the time the first tooth erupts, then they’re probably too young to be nervous. But if you wait until your children are older than 2 years old to take them to the dentist for the first time, they may feel anxious about their visit.

What’s the best way to prepare your child for the whirring machinery and sharp instruments, and the strangers who will be examining his or her teeth?

• Give your child a sneak preview . Take your child to your next dental checkup so he or she can watch you have your teeth examined and cleaned.
• Learn more about it . You can find books and online resources to teach children more about dental health and dentist visits. Try a classic children’s book about going to the dentist for the first time, such as  Curious George Visits the Dentist .
• Play dentist . Take turns being the dentist and the patient with your child. Examine each other’s teeth with a mirror, or use your fingers to count each other’s teeth so that your child will be familiar with the feel of a dentist examination.
• Timing is everything . Plan plenty of time so that the dental visit isn’t rushed, and make sure your child is well-rested before the visit so that he or she feels relaxed and comfortable.

Last updated Febrary 3, 2022

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The oral health information on this website is intended for educational purposes only. Always consult a licensed dentist or other qualified health care professional for any questions concerning your oral health.

What To Expect At Your Child's First Dentist Visit

The ADA and pediatricians recommend that every child see a dentist by the time their first tooth comes in or when they turn 1 year old (whichever comes first.) Since most dental problems are preventable, these early visits can help your baby or toddler get a jump-start on having healthy teeth for life. Knowing what to plan for with kids’ dental care can help you minimize any anxiety or nervousness so that future checkups are as easy as possible.

Risk Of An Untreated Rotten Baby Tooth

When baby teeth have issues, fixing them isn’t as simple as just pulling the tooth so that the new one can grow in. Your baby or toddler needs that primary tooth to act as a space saver for the adult tooth that’s growing in underneath. Otherwise, it can lead to serious issues like orthodontic complications or even speech impediments.

Untreated tooth decay in rotten baby teeth actually sets your child’s permanent teeth up for unnecessary infection. Since decay and bacteria can spread to the developing teeth underneath, delaying dental care can lead to serious complications.

Kids dental care with a family or pediatric dentist will revolve around preventative strategies and early intervention, to avoid rotten baby teeth and unnecessary side effects. In most cases, the best treatment is to fill the cavity with a small filling as soon as it ruptures through the enamel (because baby teeth can decay at extremely fast rates!)

When Should Your Child First Visit The Dentist?

Don’t wait until there’s a toothache before you schedule your child’s first dental visit. In fact, a baby’s first dental appointment needs to happen before their first birthday or when their first tooth comes in. Your family or pediatric dentist will want to evaluate for things like:

• oral development
• tongue ties

And as teeth start coming in, they’ll also screen for:

• baby bottle tooth decay
• impacted teeth
• overbites and underbites
• thumb and finger sucking
• speech problems

Since most of these conditions are best handled as early as possible, seeing your family or pediatric dentist by the recommended age of 1 will help you ensure that your baby or toddler has the best chances at a future healthy smile. Even though those teeth will eventually fall out and get replaced with permanent adult teeth, some of them will need to last well until when your child is in junior high.

What Happens At My Baby/Child’s Cleaning Appointment?

Once your baby’s 1-year old dental checkup is over, you’ll want to plan on scheduling regular six-month checkups just like the rest of your family members. Since every child is different when it comes to what they’re comfortable with or able to sit through, your family or pediatric dentist will play it by ear when it comes to their first cleaning.

It can help to bring your toddler or young child in to watch your own cleaning (or a sibling’s) as long as you have another adult there to help hold them. This experience can minimize any fear or anxiety related to their first dental cleanings .

For the most part, a toddler’s first dental cleaning will be when they’re around 2 or 3 years old. Again, this depends on the child. The dentist or hygienist will likely ease into the cleaning by “counting” your child’s teeth, using a special polishing tool (“electric toothbrush”), scaling off plaque (“using a toothpick”) and then applying fluoride (“vitamins”) to ward off cavities.

Depending on how cooperative your toddler or child is, your dentist will eventually start taking yearly checkup X-rays to screen for cavities and impacted teeth. This could be as early as 2-3 years old or as late as age 5.

Overview Of Your Childs First Dental Appointment 

It’s super important for you to bring your baby or toddler to the dentist every six months for checkups. Preventative visits help you avoid common dental problems and eliminate the risk of associating the dentist’s office with pain (which can happen if you wait until your child as a toothache or other dental problem.)

Baby’s first dental visit needs to be scheduled by the time their first tooth pops through or by their first birthday (whichever one happens first). Ask your family dentist if they see children or if it’s ok for your toddler to watch during your next checkup. The more familiar they are with the checkup and teeth cleaning experience, the better chances there are that your child won’t be as nervous when it’s time for their own visit.

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PlayWell Publications

Playwell pediatric blog, when should my child first see a dentist, march 8, 2022.

I have a lot of families who bring their kids in for a first visit at 3… or 5… or not until something is wrong. Often time this stems from old recommendations still held onto by older general dentists, who often don't prefer to see kids under a certain age, anyways. Many families think the first dental visit should occur between 3 and 5 years of age. Truth be told, I see a lot of kids come in for a first visit in that age range, and it's true that many of them are fine and have no cavities, no bad habits, are eating well and not snacking leisurely, and don't still have pacifiers or thumb sucking habits, etc. Everything is well and good! But there are many kids, too, who come in for a first visit during those ages who do have things going on - things which would have been better prevented rather than trying to fix afterwards (you get a lot less fight saying "no" to thumb sucking in a 2-year-old than to a 5-year-old). Habits are forming and 5-year-olds can be stubborn and developing their own sense of independence. Better to have good habits already than to try to change everything on the back end.

But the end result of the most common problem we deal with in dentistry is cavities - it's 5x more common than the 2nd most common chronic disease of childhood in America - asthma. When a 4-year-old comes in for a first dental visit and has cavities, especially if there are 8 cavities, it is usually beyond the scope of what a child can tolerate to have two to four 1- hour long dental visits to "numb, drill, and fill" all those teeth. Kids age 3-5 represent the largest subset of kids who I treat with sedation dentistry - having an anesthesiologist start an IV and have the child go to sleep so I can do all the restorations at once.

The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD) and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommend children start seeing the dentist as soon as they have teeth, or no later than 1 year of age. Like visits to the pediatrician, these visits are 80% talking and 20% examining the child. I want to talk to parents about how to prevent problems from happening! We talk about when on-demand feeding can become problematic, when non-nutritive habits become problematic, when to start brushing teeth, what toothpaste to use and how much, how to brush teeth (for you and for your child), for how long kids need help with this, when to start flossing, how diet and frequency of eating/drinking factor into cavity causation, gum disease and care, injury prevention, etc. These are things we like to talk about as they become age-appropriate, and ideally just a smidge BEFORE they become relevant so you're armed with the information in advance!

Some 1- and 2-year olds are a little less than thrilled about having their teeth examined - I like to say it's a lot like your child's first haircut. Sometimes there's a little stress from the unfamiliar situation, but with a time or two (and with a lot of LEGO® to play with), we learn that the dentist can be a pretty fun place to go to, and that's fully half of the battle! We want kids to have healthy smiles but we also want kids to enjoy going to the dentist for a lifetime. At PlayWell Pediatric Dentistry we never lose sight of the latter while seeking the former. "Building up young smiles" is our motto and that means keeping your child as our focus, not just your child's teeth.

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Your Baby's First Dental Visit

Your baby is hitting new milestones every day, and his or her first dental visit is another one to include in the baby book!

Your child’s first dental visit should take place after that first tooth appears , but no later than the first birthday. Why so early? As soon as your baby has teeth , he or she can get cavities. Being proactive about your child’s dental health today can help keep his or her smile healthy for life. (Need a dentist? Use our Find-A-Dentist tool to find one in your area.)

How to Prepare

Moms and dads can prepare, too. When making the appointment, it can’t hurt to ask for any necessary patient forms ahead of time. It may be quicker and easier for you to fill them out at home instead of at the office on the day of your visit.

Make a list of questions, as well. If your child is teething , sucking his or her thumb  or using a pacifier  too much, your dentist can offer some advice.

What to Expect During the Visit

If your child cries a little or wiggles during the exam, don’t worry. It’s normal, and your dental team understands this is a new experience for your child!

Tips for a Great Visit

• Don’t schedule an appointment during naptime. Instead, pick a time your child is usually well-rested and cooperative.
• Make sure your child has had a light meal and brushes their teeth before their appointment so they won’t be hungry during their visit.
• Save snacks for after the visit so they aren’t on your child’s teeth during the exam.
• Think of the appointment as a happy and fun experience. If your child becomes upset during the visit, work with your dentist to calm your child. You’re on the same team!

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The Happy Visit: How to Treat a Child at Their First Dental Appointment

Note:  This is Part 2 of Debbi Viger’s series, Special Needs: Everyone Has Special Needs. Read Part 1 here .

If every patient is to be treated as special, young children need to be treated as super special! It is most important that young children learn to love the dental office. We can eliminate fear and apprehension by setting the future of dental appointments with a stress-free, stellar start. It is best to start early with educating the parents-to-be on proper daily home care, nutrition for dental health, and a request to start their child’s appointments at age one. If we set the stage for prevention and happy, educational visits, we can predict a life free of dental fear .

At that first appointment, we want to spend the bulk of the time educating . This is when we do a knee-to-knee examination. Have a parent hold the child with baby’s legs wrapped around their waist and head by the parents’ knees; the dental professional is then knee-to-knee with the parent and has full access to the child’s head and neck. Fully examine the soft tissues, potential tongue and lip ties, eruption patterns, and teeth. Show the mirror and explorer to both child and parent. Count fingers first to build comfort and then move on to teeth. All the while discussing what you are seeing and what you expect to see. Alert the parent to any potential issues noted, and possible treatment needs.

Grab that super soft infant brush and do a toothbrush demonstration so that parents see how to create a plaque-free mouth and have them practice in the child’s mouth. How can we expect parents to brush their children’s teeth if we have not provided the education? Let them practice in the office and offer advice. For brushing simplicity and ease of repetition, I teach BOIT brushing to all; bumpy, outside, inside, tongue. Wet the soft brush, apply a rice-sized portion of paste/gel or leave off if sensory issues are found. Try all sorts of flavors for added interest.

Always teach starting in the upper right, do all maxillary teeth, drop to the mandibular left and complete the arch. This is the first of three complete circles. “Bumpy” is the biting surface; tell parents this allows the paste time to sink into the teeth. “Outside” are the parts of the teeth you see when they smile; again upper right maxillary to start, then follow all the way around completing the second circle. Next, the “insides” which are the teeth surfaces by the tongue; again upper right and all the way around. Three complete circles and then the tongue gets a quick brushing. At this young age, a cloth can be used to remove excess saliva or paste. Maybe a disclosing toothpaste is needed to help accuracy. Also advise what types of paste and brushes, or cloths, will work best for their child. The more information given, the better the outcome.

Take this opportunity to mention hidden sugars and sleeping with a bottle or sippy style cup. Many parents still do not realize that free access to juice, milk, and formula, leads to decay. Stress water as the only beverage for non-mealtimes. Discuss how yogurt can be nutritiously beneficial but to check the sugar concentration. One-digit sugars will be a better option than higher levels of sugar and explain how four grams of sugar equals a teaspoon. Keep a yogurt cup handy of child flavored yogurt and circle the sugars on the package, then compare to a portion of greek yogurt, and see the significant difference. Show labels of 100% juice and remind parents it’s not all about organic and non-GMO, it is about introducing too much sugar in the diet. Do the same with a box of raisins and discuss the sticky nature of foods that adhere to the pits and fissures of teeth which can pose a decay risk. Use this short appointment to set the stage for a lifetime of excellent oral health.

If the appointment is progressing nicely, take this time to demonstrate the prophy angle. Let the child listen to the sounds and feel the rubber cup on a parent’s finger and then on their own. If behaviors are still excellent, use a tiny bit of fine prophy paste and begin on the anterior teeth and gently polish.

The most important aspect of the initial appointment is educating the parent ; stop if the child begins to fuss. Brushing alone is a huge win. Apply a fluoride varnish in a mild flavor at the conclusion of the appointment. Offer a written sheet outlining brushing technique, nutrition examples, and a reminder to return in 6 months, or as needed if there is an issue. Remind parents that daily brushing is necessary and that it gets easier with practice and the reward is a decay free mouth.

Making a child’s first dental appointment, the “happy visit,” stress-free and a happy experience, can set a child up for a lifetime of dental health without apprehension of the dental office. It is also an imperative time to educate parents on oral health , oral care at home , and healthy nutrition choices . As dental hygienists, the impact you can make on even your tiniest patients is so powerful. I encourage you to be that impactful hygienist !

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Preparing Children for Their First Dental Visit: A Guide for Parents

Simone bagattoni.

1 Unit of Special Needs Dentistry and Paediatric Dentistry, Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, University of Bologna, 40125 Bologna, Italy

2 Unit of Pediatric Dentistry, Department of Surgical, Medical and Molecular Pathology and Critical Care Medicine, University of Pisa, 56126 Pisa, Italy

Francesca Nascimben

Elena biondi, raquel fitzgibbon, lisa lardani, maria rosaria gatto, gabriela piana, katia mattarozzi.

3 Department of Experimental, Diagnostic and Specialty Medicine, University of Bologna, 40126 Bologna, Italy

Associated Data

The data presented in this study and the information booklet are available on request from the corresponding author.

The aim of the study was to test an information booklet containing suggestions to parents on how to prepare their child for the first dental visit. Forty-five children and one parent per included child took part in the trial. Children were randomized in two groups; the information booklet was e-mailed to the parents of the study group. At the end of the visit, the dentist and the parent evaluated the child’s behavior through the Frankl Behavior Rating Scale (FBRS) and the utility of the booklet through a Likert scale. The children evaluated the pleasantness of the visit and the perceived pain through the Wong–Baker FACES ® Pain Rating Scale (WBFPRS). Parents evaluated the information booklet as highly understandable and useful. According to the dentist, informed children were more cooperative (FBRS median score: 4; IQR: 3.5–4) than the control group (median score 3; IQR: 2–4) ( p = 0.013; Mann–Whitney U test). Children prepared with the booklet reported less pain (WBFPRS: 0.40 ± 0.82 vs. 1.42 ± 1.99; p = 0.034; t -test;) and tended to evaluate the visit as more enjoyable (WBFPRS: 1.1 ± 2.14 vs. 2.75 ± 3.43; p = 0.064; t -test) than unprepared children. The information booklet increases the child’s ability to cooperate during the visit and could represent a useful instrument for the clinical practice.

1. Introduction

In medicine and dentistry, the treatment’s effectiveness derives not only from the competence of the physician but also from the ability to create an effective relationship with the patient. When the patient is a child or a special-needs patient, the relationship is more complex [ 1 , 2 ]. The dentist has a dual task: to deal with the child’s possible resistance arising from fear of the unknown and potentially threat; to deal with parents’ behavior, often unprepared to adequately guide their child toward dental care [ 3 ]. Obtaining the child’s and parents’ cooperation, while promoting a positive attitude toward dental care, is a primary goal for the pediatric dentist [ 4 ].

In this context, preoperative communication is very useful, but often underestimated. Many studies have shown how the information children receive about the dental environment before the visit can influence their behavior, both positively and negatively. A previous study showed that presenting pictures of children enjoying the dental visit promotes a positive relationship with the dentist [ 5 ]. The study showed a reduction in anticipatory anxiety, the unpleasant sensation that afflicts children during their first dental experience [ 5 ]. The study by Melamed et al. [ 6 ] showed that children that were previously prepared for restorative procedures watching a video of a peer undergoing the same procedure can overcome their fears and be more cooperative. The children of the control group, who were shown a video with nondental content, reported a higher level of anxiety.

Even though the child acquires information of the therapy’s steps and instruments, they have never experienced them directly; thus, they can be frightened of what they will feel. It is, therefore, necessary to provide preparatory sensory information; this helps the child to cope with fear and pain, especially when combined with the use of distraction. Distraction alone may not be enough if the child, unaware of what will come, is tense and unable to distract themself; the prepared child knows what awaits them and is more easily distracted [ 7 , 8 ]. As shown in several studies, the parent’s state of anxiety greatly influences that of the child; hence, the preparatory information is also useful for reassuring the parent [ 9 ].

To date, not enough attention has been paid to the role of communication before the first dental visit to encourage the child’s cooperation and avoid dysfunctional behaviors. The dentist can provide parents with the information they need to adequately prepare the child for treatment. The present study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of an information booklet to promote pediatric patients’ cooperation during the first dental visit. We hypothesized that offering guidance to parents on how to prepare their children for the first visit would (I) reduce the degree of unpleasantness of the visit for children, (II) reduce the child’s pain perception, (III) increase the child’s cooperation, and (IV) be appreciated by parents.

2. Materials and Methods

This was a single-center parallel-group study. We adopted a single-center approach to guarantee consistency regarding equipment, environment, and data collection. The study took place at the Unit of Pediatric Dentistry of the Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences of the University of Bologna.

The study design was approved by the Ethics Committee of Area Vasta Emilia Centro (CEAVEC) on 23 January 2019 (protocol No. 0033664, ref 69/2019/SPER/AUSLBO) and registered on ClinicalTrial.gov ( {"type":"clinical-trial","attrs":{"text":"NCT05608720","term_id":"NCT05608720"}} NCT05608720 ).

2.1. Sample Size

Preliminary results from a pilot study carried out by the same scientific committee (not published data) evidenced an average of visit pleasantness rated by children equal to 0.9 in the study group and 2.7 in the control group. Consequently, at an alpha level equal to 0.05 with a power of 80% for a two-sided test and an allocation ratio of 1:1 between the two groups, a sample size of at least 21 children was needed in each group.

2.2. Recruitment and Randomization

Eligible participants were parents and their children who made an appointment for a first visit at the Unit of Pediatric Dentistry of the Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences of the University of Bologna between January 2019 and September 2019. The parents of 158 children were initially contacted by telephone by the principal investigator, a pediatric dentist, to check the exclusion/inclusion criteria and to obtain a preliminary verbal informed consent for study participation. A total of 102 children were excluded because they met one or more of the exclusion criteria (i.e., previous dental visits, intellectual disability, and mother tongue other than Italian). Parents were then emailed information regarding the objective of the study to obtain formal informed consent to participation. Of the 56 eligible children, eight did not show up on the day of the visit, and the parents of three children did not consent to participation in the study. Forty-five children and one parent each were included in the study. After obtaining informal consent by e-mail, participant randomization was performed. Each participant was assigned an alphanumeric identification code. The parent and respective child were identified with the same number and a different letter code (example: child C_01, mother M_01, and father F_01). The participants were randomly assigned to the study or control group.

2.3. Procedure

Two days before the dental visit, the parents within the study group received the information booklet as a PDF file by e-mail. The parents and children in the control group received the usual information (i.e., day, time, place of the appointment, and bureaucratic information) along with a thank you for participating in the study.

The day of the dental visit, written informed consent was collected, and the children of both groups were visited by a pediatric dentist on duty at the time, blinded to patient group allocation. The first dental visit consisted of a visual examination of the oral cavity with the aid of a dental mirror and a dental probe to assess the oral health status of the child. A tell–show–do approach was utilized. No operative procedures (e.g., fillings or X-rays) were performed. At the end of the dental visit, the principal investigator handed the pediatric dentist, the parent, and the child a paper questionnaire.

The child’s questionnaire investigated the pleasantness of the visit and the perceived pain using the Wong–Baker FACES Pain Rating Scale (WBFPRS) with corresponding scores from 0 to 10 [ 10 ] ( Figure 1 ).

Wong–Baker FACES Pain Rating Scale.

The dentist’s questionnaire investigated the child’s behavior during the visit using the Frankl Behavior Rating Scale (FBRS) [ 11 ] (1 = definitively negative, 2 = negative, 3 = positive, and 4 = definitively positive).

The parent’s questionnaire investigated the behavior of the child during the dental visit through the FBRS; if part of the study group, it also investigated the evaluation of clarity, comprehensibility, usefulness, ease of application, and truthfulness of the booklet through the Likert scale to five points (1 = very little, 5 = very much).

2.4. Information Booklet Description

The information booklet was ad hoc written on the basis of the effectiveness of communication in the doctor–patient relationship [ 12 ]. The choice of concepts and words was based on the literature on stress and the nocebo effect [ 13 ]. The objectives were to increase knowledge about the first dental visit and to prevent the child from activating negative expectations and aggressive or avoidance responses. The booklet was written in Italian, and it consisted of four pages with texts and pictures showing a parent and a child talking about the visit. Specifically, the first part of the booklet explained to parents the importance of the first dental visit in promoting a positive attitude toward the dental environment. The second part suggested how the parent should prepare the child for the visit: “inform the child about the visit to the gentle dentist using truthful and positive words”; “accept the child’s fears and concerns without denying them”, using phrases such as “you must not be afraid”; “prepare the child for some simple procedures, such as ‘sit down, it is time to count your teeth’”; “welcome the concern and fear expressed by the child”; “propose a cartoon about Peppa Pig’s first dental experience ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLN0smEFoPI , Peppa Pig episode 2 × 37 ‘At the Dentist’, accessed on 15 December 2018)”; “do not use words with negative emotional valence”; “do not promise that unpleasant events will not occur”; “do not promise gifts”; “do not talk about negative dental experiences” ( Figure 2 ). Easy-to-understand language and colorful images consistent with written information were used to make communication more effective. The booklet is freely available upon request to the corresponding author.

Example of easy-to-understand language and colorful images adopted.

2.5. Statistical Analysis

Statistical analysis was conducted with SPSS software (27.0 version, SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA). A Kolmogorov–Smirnov test verified the Gaussian distribution of the variables. Consequently, the mean and standard deviation were calculated for WBFPRS scores; the median and interquartile range (IQR) were calculated for FBRS scores. The t -test and Mann–Whitney U test were used for the comparison of continuous variables and the chi-square test was used for categorical variables. The significance level was set at p < 0.05. The biostatistics were masked to the group allocation.

3.1. Sample

Twenty-one children were included in the study group, along with 24 in the control group. Descriptive characteristics of children, parents, and operators are described in Table 1 . No significant differences were found between the two groups.

Descriptive characteristics of the study and the control group.

3.2. Information Booklet

The average scores provided by the parents concerning clarity, comprehensibility, usefulness, ease of application, and truthfulness of the booklet are shown in detail in Table 2 .

Evaluation of booklet’s contents.

The difference in pain reported by the children during the visit between the study group (0.40 ± 0.82) and control group (1.42 ± 1.99) was statistically significant ( p = 0.034; t -test). As shown in Figure 3 , children in the study group reported less pain than the control group.

Reported pain by children in the two groups.

The difference in pleasantness reported by the children during the visit between the study group (1.1 ± 2.14) and the control group (2.75 ± 3.43) was not statistically significant ( p = 0.064; t -test). As shown in Figure 4 , children in the study group tended to evaluate the visit as more pleasant than the control group (lower scores indicate higher approval).

Reported pleasantness of the visit by children in the two groups.

The difference in children’s behavior assessed by the operators between the study group (median: 4; IQR: 3.5–4) and the control group (median: 3; IQR: 2–4) was statistically significant ( p = 0.013; Mann–Whitney U test). As shown in Figure 5 , operators judged the children in the study group as more cooperative compared to the control group.

Dentists ‘evaluation of children’s behavior.

The difference in children’s behavior assessed by parents between the study group (median: 4; IQR: 3–4) and the control group (median: 4; IQR: 2.25–4) was not statistically significant ( p = 0.347; Mann–Whitney U test).

4. Discussion

Negative, painful, and invasive experiences play a central role in the etiology of dental fear, and they often date back to childhood and adolescence. Children who had a negative experience since the first approach to the dentist have a higher risk of suffering from dental fear than children who had only a negative or painful experience after several positive experiences [ 14 , 15 ]. Hence, this shows the importance of setting up a structured first dental visit that activates positive experiences and nontraumatic memories.

This is the first study in the literature to focus on the child’s preparation before the first dental visit. This preparation took place in a safe environment and by an affectively relevant person such as a parent informed by the booklet. Parents appreciated the information booklet considering it clear, easy to use, and truthful. Our results show that guiding parents to prepare their child for the first dental visit has a reassuring effect on both sides. Parents felt involved in the process from the beginning and felt ready to explain the situation to their child. Children showed a more cooperative behavior, and they tended to find the visit more enjoyable than the children in the control group. Notably, they felt less pain during the procedure. For clarity, the first dental visit in both groups did not include operative or invasive procedures. The reported pain is probably an expression of the stress experienced during the visit. However, the lower reported “pain” of the study group could be explained by less anticipatory anxiety and an increased sense of control toward an unknown experience [ 16 ]. Many studies agreed in identifying negative experiences and anxiety as powerful modulators of pain perception, including in dentistry [ 17 , 18 ]. However, the relationship between anxiety and preparation may have a twofold trend; too much or too little information can increase anxiety levels [ 19 ]. Therefore, it is important to pay attention to the quality and quantity of information; the booklet provides the parent with specific indications on what to say and what not to say to the child [ 20 ].

An important result emerged from the pediatric dentists’ evaluation: children in the study group were more cooperative than the unprepared children. This outcome represents a great advantage for the pediatric clinician and potentially even more so to the general practitioner. In contrast, parents did not see their children’s behavior as more cooperative. This could be explained by the fact that both groups were approached by experienced pediatric dentists, well trained in dental behavior management [ 21 ]. An increase in the number of participants could lead to a more consistent result, in accordance with the dentist’s assessment.

A limitation of the study concerned using single-item measures. However, we based our methodology on validated psychometric scales used to rate pain, emotional stimuli, and behavior during the visit. Randomization gave control over confounding variables that could not be held constant or measured, such as the reason for the first visit, the parents’ gender, age, and educational level, the parents’ personality traits and previous dental experiences, the child’s personality traits, or any other unknown confounding factors that could differentiate the group composition. Bias, potentially derived from the pediatric dentist who visited the child, was controlled by masking the procedure. Considering the aim of the study, masking of participants could not be applied. Data analysis potential bias was controlled by masking the biostatistics.

In accordance with the literature, our results confirm the importance of preparing parents and children for their first dental visit through booklets, simulation programs, or smartphone applications [ 22 , 23 ].

A further research project could evaluate the efficacy of the booklet in the long term (i.e., during dental treatment) and for children with previous negative dental experiences. In addition, it would be interesting to test the information booklet on general dental practitioners and to extend an adapted version to other care settings involving children. Lastly, a further evaluation of the difference between a written booklet and audiovisual material such as a video of a first visit could be tested.

5. Conclusions

Guiding parents to prepare children at home increases the ability to cope with the dental visit and decreases the perception of discomfort and pain. The information booklet is easy to implement in the clinical practice, both in private and in public facilities, and the cost is negligible.

Acknowledgments

We acknowledge the participants who made this study possible.

Funding Statement

This research received no external funding.

Author Contributions

Conceptualization, G.P. and K.M.; methodology, K.M. and S.B.; investigation, F.N., E.B., and L.L.; data curation, S.B., M.R.G. and K.M.; writing—original draft preparation, S.B., F.N., R.F., and K.M. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

Institutional Review Board Statement

The study was conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki and approved by the Ethics Committee of Area Vasta Emilia Centro (CEAVEC) on 23 January 2019 (protocol No. 0033664, ref 69/2019/SPER/AUSLBO).

Informed Consent Statement

Informed consent was obtained from all subjects involved in the study.

Data Availability Statement

Conflicts of interest.

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

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5 tips to prepare your toddler for their first dental visit, according to a dentist

Avoid a toddler freakout at the dentist's office in five easy steps.

By Dr. Zachary Linhart, DDS February 26, 2020

As a dentist and a parent, I know getting kids pumped about dental care is not always easy. Especially when quality time with the toothbrush means an inevitable tantrum, as it does for some toddlers.

While the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry recommends a visit to the dentist when the first tooth appears, or no later than your child’s first birthday , establishing a few simple habits before your toddler’s first dental appointment could be your best bet for an easier first time in the dentist chair.

Here are five easy ways parents can prepare their toddler prepare for the first dental visit.

Start brushing early

I know how important (but tough) it is to get kids into any sort of routine—let alone a dental one. We began our children’s dental routine as infants by cleaning their mouths and gums regularly with a soft infant toothbrush or cloth and water. Between 12-18 months, we started a brushing routine with non-fluoridated toothpaste.

The earlier children fit toothbrushing into their daily routine , the easier their first dental visit will be. Just like adults, children should brush their teeth twice daily for 2-3 minutes, ideally early in the morning and before going to bed.

Schedule your child’s nighttime brushing before they get too tired. For example, if your child usually nods off at 8 pm, have them do their nightly brushing and flossing at 7:15 pm. We’re all a bit more cooperative before the Sandman comes knocking.

Make it tasty

Finding a gently-flavored children’s toothpaste your child likes to brush with can make brushing a lot more enjoyable—and may make that first dental visit go more smoothly, too. While mint flavored is a good go-to for adults, bubble gum or chocolate-flavored toothpaste may be more appealing for the little ones.

Parents can begin brushing their children’s teeth with a tiny pea-sized amount of non-fluoridated toothpaste as early as 18 months. Once your child learns how to spit (around 2 years old), switch to fluoride toothpaste to protect against dental decay.

Avoid surprises

Most kids don’t particularly enjoy bad surprises—and who can blame them? Showing up to a strange, sterile place like a dentist’s office, with loud, scary noises and “a big person” putting their hands in your mouth? No, thank you!

The best way to prepare a child for the dentist is to tell, show and do:

Tell: Start by spending some time telling your child about the dentist and why it’s important to visit.

Show: Demonstrate for your child what the dentist does by reading a children’s book (and explain why it’s not scary!).

Do: Bring your child on a quick field trip to the dentist and let them see, touch and experience the office before their first visit.

Play pretend

Before the first visit, try play-acting “trip to the dentist” with a stuffed animal. Encourage your child to count and brush teeth, floss between their chompers and have fun taking turns in a pretend dentist chair.

Use praise & positive reinforcement

Visiting the dentist is a new and sometimes scary experience for children. While starting and prioritizing a brushing routine helps in the long run, no amount of prep can guarantee a perfect first time dental visit.

Praise and positive reinforcement helps kids become excited to care for their teeth. Rewarding healthy habits and your first dental visit with a trip to the park, smiley stickers and big hugs makes the process less frightening for kids—and less troublesome for parents.

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A Child’s First Dental Visit

An exploration of why the age 1 visit is a game changer in terms of overall oral health and childhood caries.

EDUCATIONAL OBJECTIVES

After reading this course, the participant should be able to:

• Explain the concept and value of a dental home and the Age 1 dental visit, as well as utilization rates for this model of care.
• Describe fundamental clinical practices and challenges when caring for infants and young children.
• Detail key issues surrounding childhood caries and the need to educate parents and caregivers of young pediatric patients.

For the better part of the last 100 years, dentistry followed the “see and treat” concept; meaning that oral health care was, for the most part, treatment oriented. Dentists did what they were trained to do, which was to treat dental caries. Most patients visited the dentist to address a specific problem (usually prompted by the occurrence of pain). Many did not consider primary teeth important, since they were looked upon as being transitional, and would soon be exfoliated and replaced by permanent teeth. In fact, in the 1950s some dental offices had signs in their waiting rooms proclaiming, “No children under age 13 treated.”

With an increase in the knowledge of the dental caries process, dentists gradually began to see children at earlier ages. Many dentists were ill equipped to communicate with and/or treat such young patients; consequently, the recommended age for the child’s first dental visit was on or after the 3rd birthday. Dentistry for patients under the age of 3 was largely approached didactically and not clinically. Prevention of dental disease for this group was a mere afterthought.

PARADIGM SHIFT

Once dental caries was understood as a chronic bacterial disease with a behavioral component, the paradigm shifted from treating the resulting damage to addressing the cause (prevention). In turn, this shift had a significant impact on determining the optimal age for the first dental visit.

Dentistry will never “drill its way out” of the early childhood caries (ECC) epidemic. For practitioners to succeed in the fight against ECC, they must improve preventive efforts and manage lesions in their earliest stages. A patient’s risk of developing dental caries starts with the introduction of oral pathogens into an infant’s mouth; therefore, first seeing the dentist at age 3 could prove too late. The age 1 visit not only allows for preventive therapies and early treatment, it also benefits the child by helping to establish optimal feeding and oral hygiene habits.

In a 1992 policy statement, the American Academy of Pediatrics proposed a definition of the medical home and referred to the “delivery of advanced primary care, with the goal of addressing and integrating high quality health promotion, acute care, and chronic condition management in a planned, coordinated and family centered manner.” 2 In 2001, the AAPD adopted its Policy on the Dental Home, based on the American Academy of Pediatrics’ medical home concept. Children who have a dental home are more likely to receive appropriate and routine preventive care and thus have a reduced risk of dental disease. 3

The recommendation for a child’s first dental visit to occur at or before age 1 has been the standard since 2001. Yet, practically speaking, dentistry for patients under the age of 3 continues to be largely spoken of didactically, and not widely implemented clinically in general practice. This is not a criticism as much as an observation. Dentists are busy addressing the functional and physical effects of dental caries and have little time to address the process. Many have not been adequately trained to understand the purpose and method of introducing the age 1 patient to clinical practice. This article will explain the rationale, benefit and technique for implementing the age 1 dental visit. The goal is to make dental practitioners comfortable and competent in meeting this standard of care.

RATIONALE FOR EARLY CARE

Dental caries is a preventable, chronic disease that is influenced by social and behavioral factors. Improving access to — and the use of — preventive and disease management strategies, along with early dental visits, will contribute to better patient outcomes, reduction of per capita health care expenses, and improved utilization of services.

According to research, annual treatment costs for children who had their first dental visit by age 1 are significantly less than for patients who wait until they are older. 4 Children seen by a dentist before age 1 are more likely to see the dentist on an ongoing basis, and less likely to require restorative or emergency visits. By comparison, those seen for the first time at age 2 and age 3 have an increased need for preventive, restorative and emergency visits over time. 5

Unfortunately, 23% of children continue to experience dental caries, with children from ages 2 to 5 experiencing increasing rates. 6 In 2015, 57% of children on Medicaid did not receive preventive oral health services. 7 Previous research showed that Medicaid patients ages 1 to 5 accounted for 45% of total dental costs, even though this age group represented only 5% of the insured population. 6 In a 2015 retrospective review of privately insured patients, only 1% had their first dental visit by age 1. 8

It is logical to ask, “If so much could be done to enhance oral health with effective preventive strategies implemented in the first year of life, why hasn’t dentistry been more effective in this regard?” This is a good question with a complex answer.

Seldom is a patient under the age of 3 cooperative in the dental office. If the dentist’s role is only restorative, there is a dilemma of how to perform complicated procedures on kicking, screaming and crying patients. In years past, many dentists were ill prepared to cope with such patients, therefore treatment was delayed until after the patients were better able to cooperate, usually after their 3rd birthday.

Only recently have the age 1 visit, the value of a dental home, and the clinical skills to complete an infant oral examination been emphasized in dental school curricula. While practicing general dentists may have been exposed to these concepts, as previously noted, many have not been trained in the delivery of care for such young patients.

In addition, dentists are trained to diagnose and restore the consequences of dental disease. Far too often, dentistry is viewed as a surgical specialty, and the schedules of many dentists are customarily filled with patients having broken-down teeth needing immediate attention. If this pattern is to be reversed, there must be a complete paradigm shift emphasizing preventive care and, when possible, nonsurgical management.

THE THREE PILLARS

A proper infant oral examination visit rests upon three pillars:

• Risk assessment
• Oral examination
• Anticipatory guidance

Risk Assessment: Effective infant preventive dentistry begins with an assessment of individual risk factors, as established through the medical, social and dental histories (Table 1). Preventive strategies are subsequently developed to address the patient’s specific risk. These activities occur before the patient’s oral exam and are aimed at providing the primary caregiver with adequate information to reduce the risk of dental caries.

Special attention should be given to the primary caregiver’s dental history. The infant’s oral pathogens are the result of vertical transmission from the primary caregiver. Untreated caries and high bacterial counts from periodontal conditions in the caregiver’s mouth result in the infant having a bacterial flora conducive to caries development. 9

Feeding habits affect caries risk through both what is eaten, and how it is eaten. Carbohydrate-rich diets are highly cariogenic and should be limited. Feeding on demand and/or at night leads to what was formerly referred to as “baby bottle decay,” but now is now known as ECC. 10 The American Academy of Pediatrics recommend infants be breastfed until age 1. 11 Breastfeeding or bottle-feeding should not be ad lib. Feeding at night increases the risk of caries formation. During sleep, the body’s systems slow and respirations and the heart rate decreases. There is also reduced salivary flow, and this diminishes the natural cleaning and buffering effect of saliva.

Oral Examination: The examination of the infant’s oral cavity takes place in a knee-to-knee fashion (Figure 1). The dentist cradles the infant’s head in his or her lap while supporting the head. The caregiver holds the infant’s hands and feet. It is normal and beneficial for the infant to cry, as this ensures the mouth is open and an adequate visual examination is possible. The dentist should communicate throughout the examination and remain complimentary of the infant and caregiver. Clinical observations should be pointed out, and the provider should demonstrate proper technique for cleaning the teeth using a gauze, toothbrush or washcloth. Finally, fluoride varnish should be applied. (Additional clinical resources are found in Table 2.)

Anticipatory Guidance: In terms of diet and feeding habits, breastfeeding should be encouraged and added carbohydrates avoided. Feeding should be on a schedule and infants should never be put to bed with a bottle. Water after feeding should also be encouraged.

The child should be introduced to toothbrushing when the first tooth erupts. A soft-bristle brush with an age-appropriate amount of fluoridated toothpaste is recommended (refer to the AAPD’s guideline on fluoride use). As noted, the dentist should demonstrate the technique to the caregiver during the knee-to-knee examination. Other sources of fluoride include drinking fluoridated water and use of fluoride varnish, which should be placed on primary teeth at each dental visit.

TOOTH ERUPTION

NONNUTRITIVE HABITS

Nonnutritive oral habits are common in infants. The caregiver should be assured these are normal and that most infants discontinue them in time. Persistent habits that are causing distortion of the oral cavity can be addressed when the patient is mature enough to want to quit. Until then, the dentist should monitor the habit and any resulting oral changes it is causing.

RECALL VISITS

High-risk patients should be placed on a three-month recall schedule. Fluoride varnish should be applied at these visits. Additional anticipatory guidance information should be reemphasized at each appointment. More information on the infant examination can be found in the AAPD Guideline for Infant Oral Health Care ( aapd.org/ media/ Policies_ Guidelines/ G_ InfantOralHealthCare.pdf ).

Dentists who provide care for pediatric patients are highly encouraged to adopt the age 1 visit. It is the standard of care for young patients and supported by the AAPD, American Dental Association and American Academy of Pediatrics. While preventive measures are important for all patients, waiting to institute these measures at age 3 would be too late for patients at high risk of dental caries. The patient with ECC will require more dental care, incur more expense, and is likely to face a lifetime of caries. For dentistry to address this dilemma in any significant way requires intervention upon the eruption of the first primary tooth.

Just as pediatricians are the primary medical care providers for infants, dentists are the primary oral health care providers for this patient population. The role and responsibility of the dentist is to provide education and training to the parents/caregivers and, when appropriate, the child, too. The value of the child’s first dental visit, and subsequent routine appointments, is not merely the dental prophylaxis. It is the supervision and educational information the parent/caregiver and patient receives from the dental team that will provide a lifetime of value in terms of oral and overall health.

• American Academy of Pediatrics. Maintaining and improving the oral health of young children. Section on oral health. Pediatrics. 2014;134:1224–1229.
• American Academy of Pediatrics. Medical Home definition. Available at: https://www.aap.org/en-us/professional-resources/practice-transformation/ medicalhome/Pages/home.aspx. Accessed January 17, 2019.
• American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry. Definition of Dental Home. Available at: http://www.aapd.org/ media/policies_guidelines/d_dentalhome.pdf. Accessed January 17, 2019.
• Dye BA, Thornton-Evans G, Li X, Iafolla TJ. Dental caries and sealant prevalence in children and adolescents in the United States, 2011–2012. NCHS Data Brief . 2015;191:1–8.
• Nowak A, Christensen JR, Mabry TR, Townsend JA, Wells MH. Pediatric Dentistry: Infancy through Adolescence . 6th ed. Philidelphia: Saunders; 2018:137.6.
• Lee JY, Bouwens TJ, Savage MF, Vann WF Jr. Examining the cost-effectiveness of early dental visits. Pediatr Dent . 2006;28:102–105.
• Casamassimo PS, Hammersmith K, Gross EL, Amini H. Infant oral health: an emerging dental public health measure. Dent Clin North Am . 2018;62:235–244.
• Kolstad C, Zavras A, Yoon RK. Cost-benefit analysis of the age one dental visit for the privately insured. Pediatr Dent . 2015;37:376–380.
• Dye BA, Vargas CM, Lee JJ, Magder L, Tinanoff N. Assessing the relationship between children’s oral health status and that of their mothers. J Am Dent Assoc . 2011;142:173–183.
• Kierce EA, Rainchuso L. Comprehensive approach to early childhood caries. Decisions in Dentistry. 2017;3(12):34–36,39.
• The American Academy of Pediatrics Policy on Breastfeeding. Available at: https://www.aap.org/en-us/advocacy-and-policy/aap-health-initiatives/ Breastfeeding/Pages/AAP-Policy-on-Breastfeeding.aspx. Accessed   January 17, 2019.

Featured image by ONDROOO/ISTOCK/GETTY IMAGES PLUS

From Decisions in Dentistry.  February 2019;5(2):30—32,35.

Orpheus L. Triplett, DDS, is an associate professor in the Department of Pediatric Dentistry and Community Oral Health at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Dentistry, where he serves as director of Community Relations and Outreach. Triplett has more than 20 years experience in private practice and has also served as dental director for Christ Community Health Services, a multisite federally qualified health center in Memphis.

Larry Dormois, DDS, MS, is chair of Pediatric Dentistry and Community Oral Health at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Dentistry in Memphis. Board certified by the American Board of Pediatric Dentistry, he is also a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry and American College of Dentists. Dormois serves as an examiner for the American Board of Dentistry and is a site visitor for the Council on Dental Accreditation with the American Dental Association. He can be reached at [email protected].

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Brushing is should start as soon as teeth appear, which can be as early as 4 months. Babies usually get bottom teeth first, then top ones. Don’t get too worked up about when baby teeth come in.

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What To Expect If My Child’s First Dental Visit Is At Age 4?

• 1.0.1 Preparing Your Child
• 1.0.2 Preparing Yourself
• 1.0.3 Preparing the Dentist
• 2 First Dental Visit Procedures

Typically, a child must have his or her first dental visit in the first six months since the first tooth came in or in their first year. This is to ensure that the growth and development of their baby teeth are not being compromised. If your child’s first dental visit is at age 4, expect certain procedures like an X-ray and full inspection of the teeth. Health on 21’s medical center located in Palm Beach highly suggests a regular visit to a pediatric dentist to ensure that your child is not at risk of periodontal diseases.

What To Expect On Your First Dental Visit

It’s important to prepare yourself and your child for their first dental visit. Kids are commonly anxious about dental treatments which often makes it hard for the pediatric dentist to do his job well.

Depending on the age and dental condition of your child, the dentist might give you some valuable information about the following.

• Tooth decay due to feeding bottles
• Proper home oral care for infants
• Mouth cleaning
• What to do if they are teething
• Risks of pacifier

The first dental visit is very important. It is recommended on the first 12 months of the child or if the first baby teeth become visible. Regular check-ups are done after every six months just like with the adults. The first few years are crucial as these are the stages where your child will build confidence and trust with their dentist. So make sure to always follow your scheduled appointments.

Preparing Your Child

As a parent, it could be quite challenging to convince your child to visit a dentist. Most of the time, it happens when the child is about 4 years of age. This is the reason why dentists recommend the first dental visit during their first year, so they can closely monitor their dental health and start building a good relationship with the child as early as possible.

Check out these tips below that might be helpful in preparing your child for their first dental visit:

• Choose an appointment time where they are most attentive and joyful. In most cases, younger children are more attentive and energetic in the mornings, while others are more joyful in the early afternoon.
• Bring their comfort toy. Whether it’s a stuffed animal or a doll, make sure to carry something that can help them calm down when things go wrong. Let them hold on to the toy during the whole dental process to keep them relaxed.
• Explain things to them. It’s better if the child is well prepared for their first dental visit. Toddlers or kids from 4 years old can already understand simple explanations.

Preparing Yourself

If your child is experiencing dental problems at home, listen to them carefully and list down their concerns. They will not be able to share their frustrations with the dentist most especially if they are not yet comfortable with them.

You can prepare yourself by discussing your child’s concerns with their pediatric dentist , This way, you will be able to explain to your child later on the things that he needs to do to make sure that his oral health is well taken care of.

Preparing the Dentist

Fill in the dentist about your child’s behavior when they are feeling something in particular. For example, your child is not very fond of talking when he is scared and frightened, but it can be managed when he hears his favorite song. Let the dentist know what he could do to make it easy for him to communicate with your child.

The child’s reaction definitely varies on their age. To fully understand this, let us discuss their common reactions by age and the things that you can do to manage them:

• 9th to 12th month. Babies this age are typically attached to familiar people only. They could get upset when a strange individual takes them away from their parents. If they need to be taken away for an exam, calm them down by ensuring that they can at least hear your voice.
• 2nd and 3rd year. Children at this stage are more attached to their parents. They typically have mild separation anxiety and you might need to be a little bit more patient with them especially if it’s their first dental visit. Your child will be more at peace if they can see you around. Or much better, sit right next to them.
• 4 years above. At this point, your child must have had their first dental visit already, but if not, it would be important to guarantee them that everything is going to be okay. Stay by their side during the whole dental visit and be supportive until they feel comfortable with their dentist.

First Dental Visit Procedures

Your child’s dentist will do the following procedures to come up with accurate results and possible solutions if dental problems are about to emerge:

• Check all the teeth. This is done in order to prevent tooth decay and cavities.
• Examine the child’s bite. Overbite and underbite are easier to fix while the patient is still young. This will give the dentist enough time to correct the bite as early as possible.
• Look for the possible occurrence of issues in the jaw, gum, and teeth.
• Send your child for an X-ray examination, which is usually recommended for children between 5 to 6 years old.
• If needed, he might perform a professional dental cleaning.
• Explain proper oral care to your child in a friendly manner.

After the procedure, the dentist will discuss the result of his examination and answer the parents’ questions and concerns.

Tooth decay is one of the most common dental problems of children. When the growth and development of their teeth are compromised at an early age, they could suffer serious consequences as they grow up. Be sure to bring them to the dentist regularly for a thorough check-up.

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2017 | All Rights Reserved.

Arizona Supreme Court rules a near-total abortion ban from 1864 is enforceable

PHOENIX — The Arizona Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that a 160-year-old near-total abortion ban still on the books in the state is enforceable, a bombshell decision that adds the state to the growing lists of places where abortion care is effectively banned.

The ruling allows an 1864 law in Arizona to stand that made abortion a felony punishable by two to five years in prison for anyone who performs one or helps a woman obtain one. 

The law — which was codified in 1901, and again in 1913 — outlaws abortion from the moment of conception but includes an exception to save the woman’s life.

That Civil War-era law — enacted a half-century before Arizona even gained statehood — was never repealed and an appellate court ruled last year that it could remain on the books as long as it was “harmonized” with a 2022 law, leading to substantial confusion in Arizona regarding exactly when during a pregnancy abortion was outlawed.

The decision — which could shutter abortion clinics in the state — effectively undoes a lower court’s ruling that stated that a more recent 15-week ban from March 2022 superseded the 1864 law.

The Arizona Supreme Court said it would put its decision on hold for 14 days, writing that it would send the case back to a lower court so that court could consider “additional constitutional challenges” that haven’t yet been cleared up.

Attorney General Kris Mayes, a Democrat, said moments after the ruling that she would not enforce the law.

“Let me be completely clear, as long as I am Attorney General, no woman or doctor will be prosecuted under this draconian law in this state,” Mayes said in a statement, adding that the decision was “unconscionable” and “an affront to freedom.”

Democrats all the way up to President Joe Biden also blasted the ruling.

“Millions of Arizonans will soon live under an even more extreme and dangerous abortion ban, which fails to protect women even when their health is at risk or in tragic cases of rape or incest,” Biden said in a statement. He called the ban “cruel” and “a result of the extreme agenda of Republican elected officials who are committed to ripping away women’s freedom” and vowed to “continue to fight to protect reproductive rights.”

Vice President Kamala Harris announced shortly after the ruling that she would travel to Arizona on Friday “to continue her leadership in the fight for reproductive freedoms."

Responding to questions from NBC News about the Arizona ruling, a spokesperson for Donald Trump's campaign referred only to the former president's comments on Monday that abortion restrictions should be left to states.

“President Trump could not have been more clear. These are decisions for people of each state to make," Trump campaign national press secretary Karoline Leavitt said.

Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs called for the GOP-controlled Legislature, which is currently in session, to repeal the 1864 ban, though there was no immediate indication that Republican lawmakers in either chamber would take up such an effort.

"We are 14 days away from this extreme ban coming back to life," Hobbs, a Democrat, said at a press conference. "It must be repealed immediately."

While Hobbs said she was "sure" reproductive rights advocates would appeal the ruling in the 14-day window they were given, she also suggested that the best avenue to counter the ruling would be for voters to support abortion rights on the November ballot. A separate, ongoing suit would allow for abortion providers to continue providing services through the 15th week of pregnancy for another 45 days.

"It is more urgent than ever that Arizonans have the opportunity to vote to enshrine the right to abortion in our constitution this November. I’m confident that Arizonans will support this ballot measure, and I’m going to continue doing everything in my power to make sure it is successful," Hobbs said.

In a 4-2 ruling, the court’s majority concluded that the 15-week ban “does not create a right to, or otherwise provide independent statutory authority for, an abortion that repeals or restricts” the Civil War-era ban “but rather is predicated entirely on the existence of a federal constitutional right to an abortion since disclaimed” by the 2022 Dobbs decision that overturned Roe v. Wade.

“Absent the federal constitutional abortion right, and because” the 2022 law "does not independently authorize abortion, there is no provision in federal or state law prohibiting” the 1864 ban.

They added that the ban “is now enforceable.”

Tuesday’s ruling is the latest chapter in a decadeslong saga of litigation in the battleground state over abortion rights. 

Reproductive rights groups had sued to overturn the 19th century law in 1971. But when the Roe decision came down in 1973, a lower state court ruled against those groups and placed an injunction on the 1864 ban that remained in effect until the Dobbs decision.

In March 2022, Republican lawmakers in the state enacted the 15-week trigger ban, which, months later — after the Dobbs decision — snapped into effect. The law makes exceptions for medical emergencies but not for rape or incest. 

Litigation resumed after that decision as lawmakers on both sides of the issue sought clarity on whether to enforce the 1864 near-total ban or the 2022 15-week ban.

A state appellate court initially ruled that both the 1864 and 2022 laws could eventually be “harmonized,” but also said that the 15-week ban superseded the near-total abortion ban and put on hold large parts of the older law.

The decision also sent shockwaves through the reproductive rights community in Arizona and nationally.

Angela Florez, the president of Planned Parenthood Arizona, one of the state's remaining abortion care providers, said her group would now only be able to provide abortion care through the 15th week of pregnancy — and only "for a very short period of time."

The issue, however, could soon be in the hands of voters.

Abortion rights groups in the state are likely to succeed in their goal of putting a proposed constitutional amendment on the November ballot that would create a “fundamental right” to receive abortion care up until fetal viability, or about the 24th week of pregnancy.

If voters approved the ballot measure, it would effectively undo the 1864 ban that now remains law in the state. It would bar the state from restricting abortion care in situations where the health or life of the pregnant person is at risk after the point of viability, according to the treating health care professional.

That ballot effort is one of at least 11 across the country that seek to put the issue directly in the hands of voters — a move that has the potential to significantly boost turnout for Democratic candidates emphasizing the issue. 

In 2024, that could factor heavily into the outcome of both the presidential and U.S. Senate races in Arizona. Biden, whose campaign is leaning heavily into reproductive rights, won the state by just over 10,000 votes four years ago. And the Senate race features a tough battle to fill the seat held by the retiring independent Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, most likely between Democrat Ruben Gallego and Republican Kari Lake. 

During her unsuccessful 2022 run for governor in Arizona, Lake said she supported the 1864 law, calling it “ a great law that’s already on the books .” But Lake now says she opposes the 1864 law , as well as a federal abortion ban, while also acknowledging that her own views regarding state policy conflict with some voters’ preferences.

In a statement following the decision, Lake said she opposed the ruling, adding that "it is abundantly clear that the pre-statehood law is out of step with Arizonans." She called on state lawmakers to "come up with an immediate common sense solution that Arizonans can support."

"Ultimately, Arizona voters will make the decision on the ballot come November," she added. 

Gallego, who is backed by several reproductive rights groups, has said he supports the ballot measure. As a member of the U.S. House, he is among the co-sponsors of the Women’s Health Protection Act, which would create federal abortion protections.

In a video posted to X after the ruling, Gallego said he would, with reproductive rights supporters, "fight all the way to November so we can get abortion rights back for women in Arizona."

Other Republicans in the state who’d previously expressed robust support for Roe being overturned joined Lake in condemning the ruling. Reps. Juan Ciscomani and David Schweikert , who both face tough re-elections this fall, both called on state lawmakers to address the issue “immediately.”

The ruling Tuesday — the second in a swing state on the issue in as many weeks — further highlights the already prominent role abortion rights will play in Arizona and across the country.

Last week, the Florida Supreme Court upheld a 15-week ban on abortion in the state, which effectively meant that a six-week abortion ban, with exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the woman, that Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into law last year will take effect. The state's high court also allowed a proposed amendment that would enshrine abortion protections in the state constitution to appear on the November ballot.

Tuesday's decision, while jarring to reproductive rights groups, wasn’t entirely unexpected. All seven justices on the Arizona Supreme Court were appointed by Republican governors, and during opening arguments in December, they aggressively, but civilly, quizzed attorneys on both sides about the fact that the 15-week ban enacted last year did not feature any language making clear whether it was designed to repeal or replace the 1864 ban.

Only six justices participated in Tuesday’s decision, however, after Justice Bill Montgomery — who previously accused Planned Parenthood of practicing “generational genocide” — recused himself. (The court’s chief justice did not appoint another judge to take the spot, which is an option under Arizona law.)

The abortion landscape in Arizona has been uniquely confusing since Roe v. Wade was overturned. 

While the 1864 law had been on hold after the Supreme Court’s 1973 Roe decision, then-Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich, a Republican, successfully sued in 2022 to have that injunction lifted following the overturning of Roe, putting the ban back into effect — though a higher court put that ruling on hold. 

But after Mayes succeeded Brnovich as attorney general, she announced that she would not enforce the 1864 ban.

That led to suits from anti-abortion groups seeking enforcement of the ban, which ultimately led to the case making its way up to the state Supreme Court.

Adam Edelman is a political reporter for NBC News.

Alex Tabet is a 2024 NBC News campaign embed.

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Arizona Reinstates 160-Year-Old Abortion Ban

The state’s highest court said the law, moribund for decades under Roe v. Wade, was now enforceable, but it put its decision on hold for a lower court to hear other challenges to the law.

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By Jack Healy and Kellen Browning

Jack Healy reported from Phoenix and Kellen Browning from San Francisco.

Arizona’s highest court on Tuesday upheld an 1864 law that bans nearly all abortions, a decision that could have far-reaching consequences for women’s health care and election-year politics in a critical battleground state.

“Physicians are now on notice that all abortions, except those necessary to save a woman’s life, are illegal,” the court said in a 4-to-2 decision.

But the court, whose justices are all Republican appointees, also put its ruling on hold for the moment and sent the matter back to a lower court for additional arguments about the law’s constitutionality. Abortion providers said they expected to continue performing abortions through May as their lawyers and Democratic lawmakers searched for new legal arguments and additional tactics to delay the ruling.

The ruling immediately set off a political earthquake. Democrats condemned it as a “stain” on Arizona that would put women’s lives at risk. Several Republicans, sensing political peril, also criticized the ruling and called for the Republican-controlled Legislature to repeal it.

Read the Arizona Supreme Court’s Abortion Ruling

The state’s highest court on Tuesday upheld an 1864 law that bans nearly all abortions.

The decision from the Arizona Supreme Court concerned a law that was on the books long before Arizona achieved statehood. It outlaws abortion from the moment of conception, except when necessary to save the life of the mother, and it makes no exceptions for rape or incest. Doctors prosecuted under the law could face fines and prison terms of two to five years.

Planned Parenthood Arizona, the plaintiff, and other abortion-rights supporters argued that the 1864 ban, which had sat dormant for decades, had essentially been overtaken by years of subsequent Arizona laws regulating and limiting abortion — primarily, a 2022 law banning abortion after the 15th week of pregnancy.

But the territorial-era ban was never repealed. And the Arizona Supreme Court said Arizona’s Legislature had not created a right to abortion when it passed the 15-week ban. Because the federal right to abortion in Roe v. Wade had now been overturned, nothing in federal or state law prevented Arizona from enforcing the near-total ban, the court wrote.

“Because the federal constitutional right to abortion that overrode § 13-3603 no longer exists, the statute is now enforceable,” the court’s four-person majority wrote, using the statutory number of the 1864 ban.

Justice Bill Montgomery recused himself from the case after the publication of news reports that he had written a Facebook post saying that Planned Parenthood had participated in “the greatest generational genocide known to man.”

The court’s ruling was a stinging loss for abortion-rights supporters, who said it would put doctors in legal jeopardy, prompt clinics in Arizona to stop providing abortions and force women to travel to nearby states like California, New Mexico or Colorado to end their pregnancies.

At a news conference on Tuesday, Dr. Atsuko Koyama, an abortion provider in Phoenix, said she had recently provided abortions to one woman trying to flee an abusive partner and another whose pregnancy had endangered her health. She said that the court’s ruling would end that kind of care and that it “criminalizes me.”

President Biden called the ban “cruel,” and said that it was a result of “the extreme agenda of Republican elected officials who are committed to ripping away women’s freedom.”

“Millions of Arizonans will soon live under an even more extreme and dangerous abortion ban, which fails to protect women even when their health is at risk or in tragic cases of rape or incest,” he said in a statement.

Arizona’s attorney general, Kris Mayes, a Democrat, called the ruling “unconscionable and an affront to freedom.” She promised to mount a legal effort to fight off implementation of the law and said she would not prosecute doctors for providing abortions.

It is unclear whether other Arizona prosecutors will follow suit.

Gov. Katie Hobbs, a Democrat, issued an executive order putting authority to prosecute abortion-related cases under the attorney general. Ms. Mayes said on Tuesday that she would refuse to allow Arizona’s elected county attorneys to bring cases under the 1864 ban, potentially opening a new legal fight with Republican prosecutors and abortion opponents.

Jake Warner, a senior counsel for the Alliance Defending Freedom, a conservative Christian advocacy group that argued to reinstate the near-total ban, said at a news conference that he believed county prosecutors had the authority “to enforce the law as written, and so protect unborn life here in Arizona.”

At a news conference on Tuesday, Ms. Hobbs and other Democratic politicians decried the decision as “a stain on our state” that would energize abortion-rights supporters to vote in November’s elections.

Anti-abortion groups cheered the ruling.

“Life is a human right, and today’s decision allows the state to respect that right and fully protect life again — just as the Legislature intended,” Mr. Warner said. “We celebrate the Arizona Supreme Court’s decision that allows the state’s pro-life law to again protect the lives of countless, innocent, unborn children.”

Republicans control both chambers of the Legislature. The governor, Ms. Hobbs, is a first-term Democrat who campaigned on supporting abortion rights.

State Senator T.J. Shope, a Republican who represents a suburban and rural area south of Phoenix, said he would work to repeal the 1864 ban but leave in place a 15-week prohibition on abortions that was passed two years ago and signed into law by the previous governor, Doug Ducey, a Republican.

The stakes could also be significant for races up and down the ballot in Arizona this fall, after former President Donald J. Trump said this week that he thought abortion rights should be left up to the states to decide.

Political scientists in Arizona said the court’s abortion ruling was far out of step with public opinion. Only 7 percent of Arizona voters said they supported an outright abortion ban with no exceptions, according to a poll conducted last month by YouGov and Samara Klar, a political science professor at the University of Arizona.

Democrats, who seized on abortion to win campaigns for governor and attorney general in midterm elections two years ago, said it would galvanize their supporters , who were already pushing for a state constitutional right to abortion as a ballot initiative in November. In other states where abortion has been at risk of being curtailed, voters have turned out in force to protect it.

Representative Ruben Gallego, running unopposed in the Democratic primary for Senate, criticized the ruling and tied it to his opponent, Kari Lake, who called the near-total ban a “great law” when she was running for governor in 2022.

“Yet again, extremist politicians like Kari Lake are forcing themselves into doctors’ offices and ripping away the right for women to make their own health care decisions,” Mr. Gallego said, adding that he would do “whatever it takes to protect abortion rights at the federal level.”

Ms. Lake has been emblematic of a Republican shift on abortion . She came out against a federal ban last year while still backing the 15-week restriction that was in effect in Arizona, and she said on Tuesday that it was “abundantly clear that the pre-statehood law is out of step with Arizonans.” Ms. Lake called on the Legislature and Ms. Hobbs, her 2022 opponent in the governor’s race, to “come up with an immediate common sense solution.”

Representatives Juan Ciscomani and David Schweikert, two Republicans facing re-election challenges in closely divided districts, also criticized the ruling and urged state lawmakers to address it.

Tracking Abortion Bans Across the Country

The New York Times is tracking the status of abortion laws in each state following the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.

For nearly two years, supporters and opponents of abortion rights in Arizona have been fighting in court over whether the 1864 law could still be enforced, or whether it had been effectively overtaken and neutered by decades of other state laws that regulate and restrict abortion but stop short of banning it entirely.

The 1864 ban had sat mothballed for decades, one of several sweeping state abortion-ban laws that were moribund while Roe v. Wade was in effect but became the focus of intense political and legal action after Roe fell.

Abortions in Wisconsin were largely halted because of an 1849 ban, but resumed last September after a judge said the law did not make abortions illegal. In Michigan, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat, signed a repeal of a 1931 ban on abortion last spring after voters added abortion-rights protections to the state constitution.

Elizabeth Dias contributed reporting.

Jack Healy is a Phoenix-based national correspondent who focuses on the fast-changing politics and climate of the Southwest. He has worked in Iraq and Afghanistan and is a graduate of the University of Missouri’s journalism school. More about Jack Healy

Kellen Browning is a Times reporter covering the 2024 election, with a focus on the swing states of Nevada and Arizona. More about Kellen Browning