Importance Of Early Detection Of Tartar In Children & How To Treat Them

As parents, it’s natural to be concerned about your child’s teeth. From cavities and root canals to chipped teeth and gingivitis, many problems can be detrimental to the growth of your child’s teeth. Tartar is another similar dental issue that many children experience as they grow up. Tartars, unlike many other dental problems, call for early detection as they can gradually develop into other serious dental problems. 

At the Invisalign center in Dubai, we have come across many parents seeking advice on the early detection of Tartars in children. At our clinic besides the Invisalign treatment, zoom whitening, and veneers treatment, we also specialise in pediatric dentistry. So here we have put together a clear guide on what you as a parent need to know about the early detection of tartar buildup in children and how to treat them. 

Importance Of Early Detection 

If you’re unaware of what tartar is, it is a hard mineral substance that binds to the teeth. It collects on the tooth surface, including the gaps between the teeth as well as at or beneath the gum line. Tartars begin to form as a sticky plaque made up of bacteria, food debris and other matters in the mouth. When they are not removed through regular brushing, flossing and mouthwashes, the plaque eventually mixes up with other minerals found in the saliva. This then lets the plaque form into a cement-like shell, the tartar. 

Once tartar builds up, just brushing won’t remove it. Tartar is porous, so it can easily absorb stains that will turn your child’s teeth yellow. It can narrow the space between the teeth structures, making it hard to floss, leading to poor oral hygiene. Plaque produces acids that can attack the tooth enamel, damaging the gums and creating cavities. Excessive buildup of plaque can also lead to periodontal disease, which can compromise the immune system. 

In addition to these outcomes, over time, tartars can accumulate above the gum line and threaten the health of your child’s teeth, affecting its growth and even the bone structure surrounding the gum. In certain instances, these tartars may form underneath the gum line and irritate the gum tissues, leading to gingivitis and potentially a more aggressive form of periodontal disease.

Treatment

While there are many in-home remedies you can try to get rid of tartars, they are all temporary. The only effective treatment to remove tartars is through a pediatric dentist. Your child’s dentist will use a process called “scaling” to remove the tartar. Scaling involves chipping away the tartar with a specially designed steel tool in a painless manner. Besides removing the tartar from the tooth’s surface, your child’s dentist may also have to inspect or examine beneath the gum lines to ensure all traces of tartar are removed. 

After removing the tartar, the dentist will polish your child’s teeth to prevent future dental plaque buildup. Tooth polishing is a painless procedure. The dentist applies a gritty paste to the surface of the teeth for smoothing them out. The polishing helps to remove light stains from your child’s teeth as well. 

It’s important to emphasise that although dental scaling tools are widely available and can be easily purchased, they are very sharp and using them by yourself can injure your child’s teeth and complicate dental issues. Parents attempting to remove the tartar by themselves can also push the tartar below the gumline. So always get your child’s tartars removed by a professional and experienced dentist. 

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