Milk teeth are of great importance in children, milk teeth erupt from 6 months of age. Every 6 months, the milk teeth regularly take their place in the mouth, including the upper, lower, right and left. At the age of 2.5, all milk teeth erupt. Children provide their nutrition and speech functions with these teeth until the age of 6. At the age of 6, the 1st permanent teeth erupt adjacent to the milk teeth at the back. After this period, permanent teeth replace the deciduous teeth starting from the front. This event continues one year apart and this period, which lasts until the age of 12, is called the mixed dentition period. In this process, milk teeth are used until the age of 12. It is important to protect milk teeth. Since the nerve layer of deciduous teeth is larger than in adults, abscesses form more quickly in deciduous teeth. Since there are permanent teeth just below the deciduous teeth, the abscess formed damages the permanent tooth. Therefore, it is necessary to extract this tooth or perform root canal treatment.
Milk teeth should not be lost before they fall out. It is very important not to leave the place of the milk teeth that have to be extracted empty. Appliances called placeholders should be attached to the extracted area. Because if deciduous teeth are lost other than natural ways, the neighboring teeth slide into the place of the extracted deciduous tooth and close the gap. When the gap is closed, the permanent tooth coming from below will come out from different places because there is no room for it. Therefore, it will cause crowding. For this reason, it shows how important milk teeth are for children’s dental health. Fluoride application and fissure sealants are used for preventive dentistry. Fluoride application should be done carefully in a clinical environment from the age of 4-5.
WHAT IS A FISSURE SEALANT?
Bacteria in the mouth settle in the recesses and protrusions on the teeth. Caries occurs when these bacteria are retained in these areas. Fissure sealant application is to create a flat surface with the fluid covering material of these recesses and protrusions and to prevent bacteria from attaching to these areas. Therefore, teeth are protected from decay for many years. In order for our children to have healthy teeth, as parents, we should take them to a regular dentist every 6 months and get them into the habit of brushing regularly twice a day.
