Preparing for tooth removal?

[monocyte]

My 4 year old DS needs to have his 2 front teeth removed soon (long story short...cavity repair gone bad, very close to abcessing). Not looking to discuss this as I am so : over the whole situation...we have a second opinion next week and I'm hoping it doesn't actually come to this.

He hates the dentist...freaks out in the parking lot for just a cleaning. He normally is a laid back, easy going kid, but, thanks to one bad dentist and one bad experience, it has compounded into extreme anxiety - rightfully so.

Does anyone know any books/video/anything that address the subject of having a tooth pulled?? I really need to prepare him for this.

[jgmommo]

Is there a pediatric dentist near you? We've been to a pediatric dentist and a dentist who sees adults and kids. Both were just fine for my kids but the ped one did have more things to distract them in the exam room, smaller chairs, and maybe the people were more used to kids.

[monocyte]

We have been going to a pedi dentist, but they arent the best - they want to do cleanings on a 3 year old without the parent in the room, etc. Needless to say, I don't agree with a lot in this practice and we are leaving because we were told that I would no longer be allowed in the back while ds is having anything done. Scary to think they can get away with this.I feel that if DS needs me, Im going to be there...but, that's besides the point!

I asked them today for book recommendations etc, and they told me that to prepare my son was the worst thing I could do : He's a smart kid, and I feel the need to do what I can to calm the situation down a bit.

The new practice we are going to for the 2nd op is another pedi dentist, and Im hoping they are a bit more kid friendly.

[chann96]

I'm sorry you've had such a rotten time with dentists. I agree with you about it being ridiculous for them to expect you'd send a 3 year old back without you. I've heard of that before, but it just makes no sense to me at all.

If it does proceed to him needing an extraction (or whatever other work) will he be sedated for it? I really believe in sedation or anesthesia for kids with dental work especially if there is any pre-existing anxiety.

My daughter just had a fair bit of dental work done. She was under general anesthesia for it. We went into it expecting she would need at least 2 teeth extracted, but fortunately once they had her asleep and could really look they found they were able to just put caps on them. Going into the procedure I spoke with the dentist about pain about the extraction and what kind of pain relief they would prescribe. He told me that she would have some morphine given right before anesthesia was removed, but after that they didn't prescribe anything because his experience was that kids didn't usually need much of anything. He said that things like a tooth extraction where you or I as adults would be in pain for days didn't bother kids nearly as much. She ended up with 4 cavities filled, 4 caps, and 4 sealants. We did need to give her some children's tylenol and some Hyland's teething tablets that evening and night, but by the next day she wasn't hurting at all. I also gave her some arnica the evening before the procedure, the morning of it and that evening as it is supposed to reduce swelling, bruising and pain.

I, unfortunately, don't know of any books or videos to recommend. I know a long time ago we happened to find a book that had a page about a dentist in it and we discussed that before going to her first dental appointment. I think it was actually a book of French words so it had lots of different scenes and I was just able to describe some of the things in the office and take off from there. Maybe you can look for a French or Spanish book like that just to give you a picture to work from.

I think one of the big fears for kids with dentists is pain so if you can find out about sedation or anesthesia and be able to tell him that he'll be asleep for most of it and that you'll be there when he goes to sleep and when he wakes up it might really comfort him.

I wish you luck. This can be such a deep-seated fear and so hard to work with. I hope you're able to find a better dentist to work with and your son is able to be less scared.

[oliversmum2000]

maybe get him very excited about being able to give the teeth to the tooth fairy?

[pixiepunk]

if GA isn't something you want, or isn't something they do, you might be able to ask the dentist to write a one-time prescription for some kind of sedative (like valium... i don't know what they give to little kids, but to have that kind of effect).

i'm not a big believer in drugging kids, but frankly in that situation i think it'd be a lot easier for everyone, especially him. DD had major dentistry under GA about 8 months ago, and i'm so glad she has no memory of it.

in preparing her for it, we did a lot of "playing dentist" where i'd ask her to say "aaaahhh" and open her mouth real wide and i'd poke around in there, reminder her to sit still, etc. and then she'd get to be my dentist and do the same to me. it actually really seemed to make a difference in how she handled experience #2 in comparison to the total fit she threw the first time she went to the dentist.

and the tooth fairy idea is pretty good too. give him something to look forward to about having those teeth gone.

[4evermom]

The things that bothered my ds the most were the bad tastes and the numb lips afterwards. He had a bunch of work done under GA, twice, including having one front tooth removed so his supernumerary adult tooth could be removed. He also had a filling done with an oral sedative. He was fine with the missing teeth, afterwards. Didn't need any tylenol. During the teeth pulling, your ds will just feel a little pressure but no pain.

Find a dentist that puts you at ease. You might pay a little extra in consultation fees but it is worth it. If you have a hard time with pediatric ones, sometimes regular dentists are more accomadating about parents in the room.