Frequenly Asked Questions
Dental Practice & Financial Policies
Yes! We accept a wide variety of dental insurance plans and are happy to help you maximize your benefits. Our team will handles all the paperwork, files claims on your behalf, and provides an estimate of your out-of-pocket costs prior to any treatment. Because insurance policies vary greatly, we recommend contacting our office directly before your appointment so we can verify your specific coverage.
We believe every child deserves a healthy smile, regardless of insurance status. For your convenience, we accept cash, major credit cards, and flexible financing options like CareCredit, which allow you to break up costs into manageable monthly payments. Ask our front desk team about our current payment options and alternative savings solutions for uninsured families.
We completely understand that life with children is full of surprises! If you need to change your child’s appointment, we kindly ask for at least 24 to 48 hours’ notice. This courtesy allows us to offer that opening to another family or a child waiting for urgent care.
As pediatric specialists, our entire team is explicitly trained to accommodate children with diverse physical, developmental, and sensory needs. We customize every visit to match your child’s unique comfort level. This includes offering quieter appointment times, explaining steps at a personalized pace, and adapting our environment to keep them feeling completely safe and respected. Please let us know how we can best support your child when scheduling your visit!
Your Child’s First Visit
We love celebrating this milestone! The first visit should happen by your child’s first birthday, or within six months of their very first tooth poking through—whichever comes first. Starting early helps us keep their smile healthy right from the beginning!
It absolutely is! Even a few tiny teeth need protection. These early visits are less about “fixing” things and more about preventing cavities, checking on healthy jaw development, and sharing easy tips with you on infant oral care, teething, and nutrition.
We keep the first visit strictly fun, gentle, and stress-free. It is focused entirely on a quick exam, a light cleaning, and building trust. Unless your child has an urgent dental emergency, any actual treatment procedures will be scheduled for a separate day so your child never associates their first visit with discomfort.
Yes, you are a team with us! For infants and toddlers, we often do a “knee-to-knee” exam where your child sits safely in your lap, facing you, while leaning back into the dentist’s lap. You will be right there to hold their hand and cheer them on the entire time.
We only take X-rays if we absolutely need to—such as if your child’s back teeth are already touching, or if we suspect hidden decay between the teeth. If X-rays are needed, we use ultra-low dose digital sensors designed specifically for small, sensitive mouths.
Keep it light, positive, and exciting! You can read a fun storybook about the dentist together or practice counting each other’s teeth. The biggest help is avoiding scary words like shot, needle, drill, or hurt. We use kid-friendly terms like “counting your teeth” or “giving them a shiny wash” to keep things entirely positive!
Of course! You are welcome in our treatment areas. Wriggling, crying, or feeling nervous is completely normal for young kids, and we are fully trained to handle it with patience and care. We use comforting, kid-approved techniques to help them feel safe, and having you nearby provides wonderful reassurance.
You can think of us just like a pediatrician, but for smiles! Pediatric dentists complete additional, specialized training after dental school. We focus on child psychology, growing jaws, and the unique emotional and physical needs of infants, teenagers, and children with special healthcare needs.
Emergency Situations
Do not try to put a knocked-out baby tooth back into the socket. Replanting a baby tooth can accidentally damage the permanent tooth developing underneath it. However, you should still call us for an urgent exam so we can check for remaining root fragments and ensure your child’s lips, gums, and surrounding teeth are safe.
Act quickly! Find the tooth, hold it only by the crown (the chewing part), and never touch the root. Gently rinse it with water if it’s dirty, but do not scrub it. If possible, gently push the tooth back into the socket. If you can’t, place the tooth in a small cup of cold milk or clean water and call us immediately. Time is critical—saving the tooth depends on getting to us fast!
Yes, it warrants a prompt phone call. Rinse your child’s mouth with warm water and apply a cold compress to their face to prevent swelling. If you can find the broken piece of the tooth, save it in a moist paper towel or a cup of milk and bring it with you. We will evaluate the tooth to ensure the nerve isn’t exposed and smooth or repair the edge.
First, rinse their mouth with warm salt water and gently use dental floss to check if any food or debris is trapped between their teeth, which can cause intense pressure. You can give them age-appropriate acetaminophen or ibuprofen for the pain. Call our office right away so we can find and treat the root cause of the ache. Never place aspirin directly on the aching tooth or gums.
This could be a dental abscess, which is a localized infection. Abscesses can be painful or completely painless, but they require urgent professional treatment to keep the infection from spreading to other parts of the face or body. Please call us to schedule an urgent evaluation.
Keep the area clean and avoid letting your child chew on that side of their mouth. While this isn’t always a middle-of-the-night emergency, you should call us the next business morning so we can replace it before the unprotected tooth becomes sensitive, decays further, or breaks.
General Dental Questions
You should start brushing your child’s teeth as soon as the first tooth erupts! For children under three years old, use a tiny smear of fluoride toothpaste (the size of a single grain of rice). For children aged three to six, increase this to a pea-sized amount. Fluoride is highly recommended from the very start because it safely strengthens developing enamel and prevents early decay.
Brushing doesn’t have to be a battle! Try turning it into a game: play a favorite two-minute song, use a toothbrush featuring their favorite cartoon character, or download a fun tooth-brushing app with reward stickers. You can also let them brush your teeth first, or brush a stuffed animal’s teeth, to give them a sense of control and make the routine feel like playtime.
Yes! Electric toothbrushes are completely safe and can actually be a fantastic tool for kids. The vibrations do a lot of the heavy lifting for little hands that are still developing fine motor skills. Many children find the buzzing sensation exciting, which keeps them engaged longer. Just look for a brush explicitly labeled for your child’s age group with extra-soft bristles.
Most children naturally outgrow sucking habits between the ages of two and four. It generally only becomes a concern if the habit persists after their permanent front teeth begin to erupt (typically around age five or six). If your child is still vigorously sucking their thumb or a pacifier past age three, let us know so we can gently evaluate their bite and help you plan a positive way to phase it out.
It is incredibly common for toddlers and school-aged children to grind their teeth at night, and it rarely requires treatment. Most children outgrow this habit naturally as their jaws grow and their permanent teeth come in. However, if you notice your child experiencing jaw pain, tooth sensitivity, or unusual wear on their teeth, please mention it at their next checkup so we can take a closer look.
Children usually begin losing their primary teeth around age six, starting with the lower front teeth. Sometimes, a permanent tooth erupts right behind a baby tooth before it falls out, creating a double row of teeth often called “shark teeth.” In most cases, the baby tooth will wiggle out on its own within a few weeks as your child chews and speaks. If the baby tooth stays firmly locked in place for more than a couple of months, give us a call so we can help make room for the new tooth.
While every smile develops differently, the American Association of Orthodontists recommends a first orthodontic evaluation around age seven. By this time, we can spot subtle developmental issues with jaw growth and emerging permanent teeth. Early evaluation doesn’t mean your child gets braces right away; instead, it allows us to guide jaw growth and create a simpler, smoother path for straight teeth down the road.
Cavity bugs love frequency and stickiness more than outright sugar volume. Foods like fruit snacks, fruit leather, gummy vitamins, and raisins stick tightly into the deep grooves of primary teeth, trapping sugar against the enamel for hours. Similarly, sipping on juice, sports drinks, or flavored milk throughout the day provides a constant food supply for bacteria. We recommend serving sweets or juices alongside main meals, when natural saliva flow is highest, and swapping mid-day snacks for cheese, crisp veggies, or fresh fruit.
To protect your baby’s smile, it is best to avoid letting them fall asleep with a bottle of milk, formula, juice, or sweetened liquid. When a child sleeps, their saliva flow drops significantly. Any liquid remaining in the mouth pools around the teeth, allowing sugars to continuously bathe the enamel and cause a rapid form of decay known as “baby bottle tooth decay.” If your baby absolutely needs a bottle to soothe to sleep, filling it strictly with plain water is the safest choice for their smile.