Pediatric Dentists For Special Needs Children

Finding the right pediatric dentist for special needs children is important. You want a dentist that you and your child can trust. The dentists at Kool Smiles are specifically trained to work with children of all ages, including those with special needs. Call 254-781-0553 to talk to one of our friendly staff members about a dental office located near you, where you can find a general or pediatric dentist for any child with special needs.

Our Dentists Make Special Needs Children Feel at Home

At Kool Smiles, we believe that all kids deserve quality dental care. We provide special needs dentistry that includes you in every step of your child’s dental services.

You can trust our general dentists and pediatric specialists to be kind, caring and patient with your child with special needs. Kool Smiles dental care centers are designed with your children in mind. All of our offices include fun play areas filled with books, toys and games, so your child can play while they wait for an appointment. Many of our locations even include full playgrounds!

Our kid-friendly dentists are experts in caring for your special needs child. We follow the “teach, show, do” method of explaining all steps of the process before cleaning and treatment even begin.

We also respect parents and allow you to accompany your child into the treatment area. Your Kool Smiles dentist will happily include you in the cleaning and treatment process. We want your child to remember that coming to Kool Smiles for dental care is fun!

When you’re the parent of a child with special needs, it can be difficult to find the time in your schedule to visit the dentist. We understand that regular weekday hours may not be convenient times for an appointment, so many of our locations offer weekend hours. Call Kool Smiles at 254-781-0553 to see what appointments are available at your local dental office.

Why Routine Dental Care Is Important

Regular visits to the dentist for routine checkups, annual cleanings, X-rays and other procedures will keep your child’s mouth healthy. Scheduled dental visits help patients with their smile for many reasons, including:

• Prevent tooth decay and gum disease—Cleanings performed at the dentist can remove built-up plaque and tartar that cause cavities, tooth decay and gum disease if left untreated.
• Fill any cavities or existing decay—Our dentists can use different types of fillings, which will stop the tooth decay from spreading to healthy parts of the tooth or other teeth.
• Check for signs of disease or infection—When you go to the dentist at least twice a year, dental health professionals can monitor your mouth for signs of gum disease or infection. They can also take care of any tooth abscesses or other potentially painful infections.
• Remove teeth that may cause dental health issues—Wisdom teeth extractions are often necessary for 85% of people, but tooth removal may also be beneficial for stubborn baby teeth that prevent adult teeth from breaking through the gumline.
• Monitor the progress of tooth growth development—With the help of X-rays, dentists can see how your child’s adult teeth form before they break through the gumline. This is especially helpful in determining if any orthodontic care is necessary from an early age.
• Address issues with the jaw, mouth and teeth if they are not forming as expected—If your child has any abnormalities in their ability to speak, eat or chew, then your dental provider can make suggestions for further treatment options, such as oral surgery.

Maintaining Your Child’s Oral Hygiene at Home

After each dental visit, Kool Smiles dentists explain proper oral hygiene habits to you and your child with special needs. This way, you can practice proper dental care at home with your little one, to ensure that they have a bright, happy smile between visits.

Here are some tips from our dental providers on how to maintain a healthy smile:

• Use a fluoride toothpaste. Fluoride has been proven to strengthen enamel and defend against tooth decay. However, make sure your child does not swallow the toothpaste, as it could cause an uneasy stomach.
• Brush regularly. Have your child brush at least twice a day, especially after meals, to remove harmful acids from the surface of their teeth.
• Floss daily. Make sure kids floss once a day to clean in between the teeth, as these places are harder for a regular brush to reach.
• Don’t rinse. Children should not rinse after brushing their teeth. Although it may feel odd, rinsing after brushing removes the fluoride that provides more nourishment the longer it sits on the teeth.
• Use a fresh toothbrush. Replace your child’s toothbrush every three to four months to keep the bristles in good condition.
• Wear a mouthguard. If your child plays a sport or has a habit of grinding teeth, get a mouthguard for them to wear. It can prevent injury or damage to the teeth.
• Eat a healthy diet. Try to maintain a balanced diet for your kid. Excessive sugar can cause more acid to develop and weaken the tooth enamel, making it easier for cavities to form.

How to Get Your Child to Like Dental Care

For many parents, it’s not as easy to instill good oral hygiene habits once you have left the dentist. However, children can enjoy taking care of their smiles if they feel it is fun in some way. Kool Smiles adopts this way of thinking when we design our dental offices, and we encourage parents to do the same when they are teaching their kids to take care of their teeth.

Here are a few tips that will help make dental care more fun for children:

• Let them choose the toothpaste. While it is important to use a fluoride toothpaste, you can still let children pick their favorite flavor, brand or color, as long as the ingredient list still includes fluoride.
• Let them choose their toothbrush. Allowing your child to select their own toothbrush will also make oral hygiene more enjoyable. There are many different options to choose from, like toothbrushes with fun designs, TV characters and even brushes that play songs while your child uses them.
• Offer rewards. When children really start to get into a daily routine of oral care, it is a good idea to reward them in a small way. We do not recommend treating them with sweets or desserts. Instead, let them earn a star for every day of the week they brush twice, for example. Then reward seven stars with something that you know they will value as a token of their achievement.
• Brush to music. To help make sure that your child is brushing for two minutes, you can play a fun song or set a timer. This way, you will both know when the right amount of time for brushing has been completed.
• Watch a movie. Watching fun, educational videos about dental health will show children that this is a normal and necessary part of everyday life.
• Reward good behavior at the dentist. When your child goes in for a dentist appointment, consider planning a fun activity afterward. If you visit a Kool Smiles dental office, our waiting rooms and playgrounds also show children that oral health is fun, so your child will look forward to dental visits in the future.

Payment Options for Pediatric Dentists for Special Needs Children

At Kool Smiles, we are proud to accept several different forms of payment, including:

• CareCredit—a credit card designed specifically for health and dental care needs. When you sign up for this service, you can pay for costly treatments with convenient monthly payments.
• Medicaid—a joint state and federal program that provides dental coverage for children. Covered services include restoration of teeth, maintenance of dental health and relief of pain and infections.
• TRICARE—provides dental coverage to military retirees, service members and their families. We accept all TRICARE dental plans at Kool Smiles locations across the nation.
• SCHIP—The State Children’s Health Insurance Program helps low-income families pay for pediatric dental care services when their income is too high for Medicaid eligibility, but too low to pay for the cost of dental treatments.
• Cash and credit card—for patients who want to pay for dental care out-of-pocket. We accept all major credit cards as well a cash payments.
• Private dental insurance—We accept most insurance plans.

Bring Your Special Needs Child to Kool Smiles Today

Whether your child has physical disabilities or developmental delays, our general and pediatric dentists can work with any patient with special needs. We want your child to have a healthy smile for life. That’s why our kid-friendly dentists serve special needs children from before they even get their first tooth, all the way up through their teenage years.

Call us today at 254-781-0553 to schedule an appointment at your local Kool Smiles office. Come see why 97% of our patients say they would return to Kool Smiles and would refer us to their friends and family.

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Sources:

Crest: crest.com/en-us/oral-health/conditions/wisdom-teeth/wisdom-teeth-removal-extraction-surgery

Mouth Healthy: mouthhealthy.org/en/az-topics/f/fluoride

American Dental Association: ada.org/en/about-the-ada/ada-positions-policies-and-statements/statement-on-tooth

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Family Doctor: familydoctor.org/dental-hygiene-how-to-care-for-your-childs-teeth/

Care Credit: carecredit.com/faqs/

Medicaid.gov: medicaid.gov/medicaid/benefits/dental/index.html

News Medical: news-medical.net/health/What-is-SCHIP.aspx

WebMD: webmd.com/children/features/dental-health-care-tots-tweens-teens