Does My Child Need Baby Tooth Extraction?

While your child’s baby teeth are only temporary, they can have a permanent effect on the health of your child’s smile. For that reason, it’s important to establish healthy habits early on. At Sunshine Pediatric Dentistry, we take the health of your child’s baby teeth seriously. This means offering many of the same preventive and restorative procedures for children that are available for adults. And like adults, sometimes extracting a child’s baby tooth is the best option. But before we get there, we want to provide you with some background information on your child’s baby teeth.

The Life Cycle of Baby Teeth

Most babies develop their first tooth between 6 and 12 months. By around age 3, most children usually have a full set of 20 baby teeth. Just a few short years later, around age 6, kids will begin losing their baby teeth as their permanent teeth develop. Baby teeth serve the important purpose of allowing your child to talk and chew. They also provide the foundation for healthy permanent teeth to develop when it’s time.

Does My Child Need a Baby Tooth Extraction?

There are several situations in which our team will opt to extract a child’s baby tooth. Like adult teeth, baby teeth can develop cavities that lead to infection and tooth decay. If not detected and treated early, decay and infection can progress to the point that your child’s baby tooth must be extracted. Similarly, we may decide to extract a chipped or cracked baby tooth if the damage is beyond repair.

Occasionally, our team decides to extract a baby tooth as a more preventive measure. If your child is experiencing crowding or alignment issues, removing a tooth can help manage space and prepare for orthodontic treatment in the future. Other times, we may extract a baby tooth if it doesn’t start to loosen and fall out naturally as the adult tooth erupts.

Pediatric Care in San Antonio, TX

Determining whether your child needs a baby tooth extraction is a big decision. Keeping up with regular visits to our office (we recommend twice yearly) is a great way to lower the odds that your child may need a tooth extracted due to cavities or decay. To ask our team any questions about baby tooth extraction or to schedule your next appointment, call our office today!