[kaPOW!]

Hi everyone. I've been reading for a few months now as my 14 month old son starting experiencing rapid tooth decay about 4 months ago. Holy moly, thank goodness for this site.

Without getting into great detail about his situation, it will suffice to say that his decay has slowed down quite a bit in comparison to the initial rate of deterioration. It hasn't stopped, however, and I'm forever worried about the decay reaching the root.

The dentist has suggested that one option is to put metal bands around the decayed teeth. The adhesive that holds the bands is made out of a type of glass, and since all glass has naturally occuring fluoride the presence of this adhesive (which, again, holds the bands) is supposed to halt the decay. This dentist, whom I should say is pretty awesome in general, tells me that he's seen results with this in the past.

Has anyone heard of this? The first two dentists that I'd gone to didn't mention this option, but then again I dumped them with good reasons. I hesitate to have it done because it will draw a lot of attention to his mouth, but then again if it prevents the need for GA...

Do I dare hope that someone else has tried this?

Thanks for any help, and thanks to everyone for helping sooth my heart these last few months.

 

[JBaxter]

I have heard of metal caps on the baby molars but not just bands. The tooth would still be exposed from the top and get food/liquid in the crevice between the edge of the band and the tooth. I would be a little worried about covering decay and not being able to see IF it did progress.

 

[kaPOW!]

That was a worry as well. I had braces many years ago and you can still see where the brackets were attached because there's a ring of demineralization on a handful of teeth.

I see that there is another thread regarding a glass compound that's being used with low-speed drills for quick treatment of wee one teethies. I wonder if that's the same substance.

I can't seem to find anyone who's heard of this or had it done. Maybe it's a practice limited to his office.

 

[daniusa]

for the mom concerned about not being able to see the decay once the tooth is covered - if the decay is covered and doesn't have access to the oral cavity the decay can not spread. i would be worried about the naturally occuring fluoride in the glass though. fluoride has never been proven to slow or stop decay and is very toxic. a good place for info would be www.mercola.com and search for "fluoride"

 

[newbymom05]

Our DDS suggested this as well for our 14 mo old if the decay continues to progress rapidly (and I can't see why it won't

). I asked about food getting inside the cap and he said it would be bonded on so not to worry. My DH is adamant that DS not go under GA so young and the dds said that we could hold him during the procedure--not sure if/what sedation or whatever would be necessary.