Cavities- Novacaine or Gas

If you want her to continue to go to the dentist for the rest of her life, you should do everything you can to avoid any unpleasantness now. I would suggest the gas. Find another way to teach this lesson or you may be setting her up to neglect her teeth in adulthood.

I had them use gas and novacaine on my 5 year old. I think it would be cruel not to use them.

It won't encourage her to take better care of her teeth. It will only cause her to be afraid of the dentist. Make the visit as pleasant as possible. The last thing you want to do is use "You had better brush your teeth of you will have to go back to that mean dentist for another shot" Nitrous is a good option, also, ask your dentist about premedicating her with a mild seditive, or even referring you to a pedodontist (specializes in children). They strive to make the procedure the least traumatic for the child as possible, to perform the filling safely and effectively. To encourage your daughter to brush better, try the battery brushes, they work great. Or try a reward system at home. "After you have brushed your teeth for 2 minutes, I will read you 2 stories for bedtime!" I have been a dental hygienist for the past 20 years.

I never had novacaine or gas with many fillings. Our daughter age 4 had a cavity. I told the doctor no novacaine or gas. He looked at me with BIG eyes. In the end he did it. Our daughter was fine. It makes the dentist be more careful. It is not needed.

I don't believe in scaring the children about the dentist. Tell them it is a big chair. There is mirrors. The drill sounds like this. It is cool. If you don't tell them to be scared they won't be.

I'd strongly recommend the gas and here is why.

1. The ADA recommends an ADULT brush the child's teeth until age 6. They can brush themselves at age 6-11 with supervision twice a day. At age 11, they can brush unsupervised. SOOOO not to point fingers, but she got those cavities on your watch. Children aren't responsible at this age for all their decisions and you as the parent/adult need to enforce the rules. If she refuses - too bad - she's only six and you are the parent! Trust me, my 3 kids hated us brushing their teeth... and even now my 8 yr old will do a lousy job or worse yet LIE about brushing them. When discovered he gets a few days of me or his father brushing... snaps him back into line b/c he HATES that.

2. Cavities happen! One of my kids has deep crevices and according to the dentist little will prevent cavities in those teeth except sealing them (which we did).

3. Do you really want to traumatize her to teach her a lesson? If she ends up fearing the dentist... you have 12 years of misery ahead of you.

I highly recommend a rinse like ACT for kids - it won't prevent all cavities, but it makes up for some of the poor brushing habits that kids have.

Unless your daughter needs to be sedated, which is basically what the gas does, just go with the Novocain. Neither of my girls get the gas, and they've always done great!

Don't beat yourself up over the cavities, like some of the other moms suggest. Every kid is different, and some people have no idea what it's like to have a strong-willed child. :-) Have your dentist and the dental hygienist both reiterate how important brushing and flossing are. I also found the tabs that the child chews after brushing their teeth to see where the plaque still is. That impressed my daughters -- they would re-brush their teeth to get the places they missed. I also bought them toothbrushes that would play a song for two minutes, so they knew when they could be finished. And my girls like the floss in the holders as opposed to holding the floss on their fingers.

Also, if you go to a practice where there several dentists, you may want to find the dentist who works best with you and your daughter. One of our dentists found a whopping six cavities in my younger daughter's teeth; however, when we went back, a different dentist said that there were really only two that needed attention, a couple more were "watch-and-sees," and the others -- who knows. You can guess which dentist we request now!

Do what you need to do for YOUR family. Good luck!

J.

In my experience, the decision by a dentist to use gas straight off the bat is just to make it easier on the dentist, not on the child. My son has special needs and is EXTREMELY sensory sensitive, and my dentist took such care and caution in explaining and taking care of him with novocaine alone that we never have had to consider gas. He's had 6 cavities filled thus far. Also, and I can't say it's the case in your daughter's situation but remember MOST cavities and poor tooth health are genetic and not due to dental care at all. I cannot punish my son or 'teach him a lesson' when his teeth are a result of lack of fluoride in the area we lived when his teeth were developing and a family history of crappy teeth. Just a thought...
Anyway, if your dentist is that gung-ho on gas for no apparent reason-- you may want to consider another dentist.
Good luck!

Of course it is not cruel M.. When I was her age there was no choice. Gas, though quite enjoyable and may ease fear, does not stop the pain associated with having a tooth drilled.

When I was 8 my dentist once said to me "It's just a little cavity, I don't think we need any novacaine for this one." Well he put the drill to my tooth and I swear it was just a reflex, but I kicked him in the jewels...HARD. He never came near me without the novacaine again.

I have to agree with the other moms that it is NOT your childs fault that she has 2 cavities. She could have either poor enamel, she could be eating a diet unhealthy for her teeth OR she could be brushing and flossing poorly. She can not control any of these.... bad enamel is out of her control, poor diet and bad food being offered to her is also not her fault and of course she brushes and flosses poorly, she is only 6!!!! We have been brushing and flossing our daughters teeth since she can remember. She loves it because she sees us do it daily and wants to copy us. We get her special flossers and cool toothbrushes, even as rewards. The rule has ALWAYS been that WE brush first, then she gets a chance after we are done. We sing, act silly, let her select which toothbrush and flosser she will use, anything to make it FUN! SHe also knows that after the flossing and brushing that she gets to pick out her disposable dixie cup (ones that have cool things on them) and gets to rinse and take a small drink. I think if you make a fun game out of it while setting a few limits, you will change your daughters mindset about her dental hygiene. The best thing is to be a good example, keep it fun and exciting and don't have her repeatedly have negative experiences related to her tooth care.

Also, I would look at what she is eating/drinking too, especially right before bed. This should be watched regardless, as she may have teeth that are prone to cavities and despite the best cleaning may still get some cavities if she has a diet not good for healthy teeth.

Good luck and I would give her the best experience at the dentist. It's not her fault...

Gas is definitely the way to go. Growing up I had problems with my teeth and still to this day I can not get work done without gas. 6 is just too young in my opinion to deal with all those scary sounds and feelings. Even with gas she is awake, so she will remember, she just won't care at the moment.

With my 4 year old girl, I looked up pictures of people who had rotting teeth on the internet and showed her what her teeth would "look like" if she didn't take care of them. It worked so well she won't even drink or eat anything after her bedtime brushing other than water. She brushes her own teeth 2x a day and flosses once a day, but every 3rd day I tell her it is mommy's turn to make sure all the bad stuff is out so she keeps her pretty smile. I stay with her in the bathroom and brush my teeth with her as well, so when she is missing a spot I show/tell her "ok do it like mommy in this spot".It worked for my little one, just thought it might help yours too :)

M., i have a sugestion. when i was exspecting,my dentist used something other than "gas",or novicaine on me to fill a tooth. i dont remember the name of it but i would ask the dentist what that is, and would get my dentist to use that on my kid. (if its safe while exspecting, i would assume it would be safe for my kid. at any age.)i am not so sure how safe that other stuff is!?

Im a dental hygienist. You would not teach your child to brush this way. All you get your child to know is going to the dentist is painful. The gas is just to relax your child the novacaine is to numb the area.Even if gas is used the area will still need to be numbed. Reduce the childs intake of sweets, no gummy bears, raisins etc.. Brush twice a day and see your dentist for cleanings and fluoride treatments twice a year. Make it fun not scary to go to the dentist. Hope this helps.

Cavities (dental Carries) can be reversed with diet. Find a holistic dentist and do more research.

Pediatric Dental Caries (cavities or tooth decay) are a growing epidemic in our society. From my understanding, these are the possible reasons why there is tooth decay in young children:
• In the mother’s womb, the child was exposed to some kind of chemical that caused the enamel not to form properly on the teeth while developing
• The bacteria that causes decay, streptococcus mutans, can pass from primary caregiver to child through pre-chewing of food, sharing utensils and even kissing
• The child doesn’t have enough calcium and magnesium in the diet for their quickly growing bodies and their bones take what they need from the teeth

If bones can heal, why not teeth?

Nutrition to reverse cavities:

• No raisins or sticky dried fruit, fresh fruit ok
• No juice
• Limited crackers, cookies, bread etc.
• Whole grains as much as possible, limited wheat
• Cod liver oil daily
• Dark leafy greens (kale, spinach, chard, pasley) added to soups, sauces and smoothies
• Spirulina added to smoothies
• Bone broth added to soups, stews, sauces
• Raw milk, raw cheese, raw butter and kefir
• Other Mineral rich foods: seaweed, nuts (raw organic), herbs, himalayan rock salt
• Add ConcenTrace Trace Mineral Drops to our teas and smoothies

Tooth Care:
• Brush 3-5x day before meals, this keeps the streptococcus mutans bacteria levels down so that they can’t mix with the food to produce the acids that attack teeth.
• We gave her water to sip with meals and taught her how to gargle and spit to rinse her mouth out with water after eating/nursing.
• Flossed - every evening before bed.
• Mouthwash - Make a VERY weak solution of water with tea tree oil to swab her teeth

By Tooth Swish (powdered food grade calcium and magnesium with baking soda and himalayan salt) to help with recalcifying and some Tooth Soap.

Read more here. http://www.westonaprice.org/splash_2.htm
and http://www.jped.com.br/conteudo/04-80-S199/ing.asp

On the other hand, my dentist offers a gentle novocaine approach for a little extra $. You hardly feel the needle numbing you.

the gas is cruel, really awful stuff, messes up alot of things, so don't use that- but for the right reason.
And look at her diet- is she drinking pop? eating sugar- that could be the cavities- really at that age shouldn't be cavities- check out the Weston Price Foundation- I have gotten so much help there.
best of luck- isn't easy working outside the home as well as at home- I know-Kia