Monthly Archives: September 2015

Pediatric Dentistry

Dental Flipper for a two year old?

My two year old lost his front teeth in a play yard accident. I went to a pediatric dentist and asked about a dental flipper until his new teeth come in, but he just blew me off and said that wasn’t possible. When I asked him why, he said because he was the dentist and knows better. Am I just supposed to take his word for it? Won’t his teeth shift, leading to crowding?

Leila K. – New Jersey

Leila,

The arrogance you just described is one of my least favorite qualities in some medical professionals. Yes, he’s the dentist. Yes, he has knowledge you’re unaware of. But, YOU are the parent and have a right to know all you treatment options for your child and why some won’t work well.

Despite his rude behavior, the pediatric dentist was right. A dental flipper is not a good fit for a two year old. Here’s why.

First, a dental flipper is removable and would be a choking hazzard. Then, there is the issue of getting a toddler to cooperate keeping it in.

Additionally, at that age, their mouth is growing so quickly that there is no way to keep in an appliance that is attached by clipping in.

You won’t have to worry about these teeth being out, either functionally or socially. At this age, kids aren’t thrown by missing teeth. Plus, the only ones that will cause shifting is when the back teeth come out prematurely.

This blog is brought to you by Phoenix Dentists Drs. Kevin and Hillary Peck.

Lumineers

Permanent Vampire Teeth

Halloween is coming up.  I can find a lot of dentists that are willing to give me temporary vampire teeth, but none that seem to be willing to do permanent. I wanted to get lumineers shaped like vampires.  Do you have any lumineer dentist recommendations?

Ben L. – Forest City, AR

Ben,

I think you’ll have a very hard time finding a dentist who’s willing to give you permanent vampire teeth. The reason for that is the danger it poses not just to yourself, but to other people. You’ll find plenty of dentists willing to place temporary ones, but  Lumineers are permanent.

The lumineers company has a list of lumineers certified dentists. You could look up the ones in your area and just start calling down the list.

If your heart is set on it and you can’t find a lumineers dentist to do it, you could just call around and see if another cosmetic dentist will do it that places porcelain veneers. You’re not limited to the lumineers brand.

I honestly wouln’t hold out too much hope for permanent teeth though.

This blog is brought to you by Phoenix Dentists Drs. Kevin and Hillary Peck.

Affordable Dentist

Is it possible to get dental implants if you don’t have much money?

What if I really want dental implants, but don’t have very much money?

Jeremy F. – Wisconsin

Jeremy,

Some of it will depend on the dentist you go to. The first thing you’ll want is to go to an affordable dentist.  Don’t just look for the cheapest dentist, because sometimes they’re cutting corners that put your health at risk.  But, you can look for someone with reasonable prices.

Second, there are payment plans that have low and even no interest plans that will allow you to spread out payment.

One other thing you can do is get snap on dentures with just two implants while you save up for more implants.

This blog is brought to you by Phoenix Dentist Dr. Kevin Peck.