[ozmaofoz]

I think one of my 18 month old son's teeth just broke! Anyone know of any good pediatric dentists in HK?

[rani]

Oh no!

Have a read thru this thread/


http://forum.geobaby.com/showthread.php?threadid=114302

[ozmaofoz]

You save the day again Rani, thank you so much.

I took Iggy to see Denise Giles at Adventist Hospital today. She was excellent. Turns out his tooth chipped because of decay. He's one of the few kids that have problems because of night nursing. I night weaned him a few months ago, but it was too late.

She showed me how to hold him down and thoroughly brush his teeth. He screamed a lot at the office, but seemed over it about two seconds after it was done and only wanted to play with the implements. He screamed again tonight as I brushed his teeth, but he got over that pretty fast as well. Maybe eventually, he'll stop screaming when I give him a thorough brushing!

The visit was $400 and she gave him a fluoride treatment. I take him back in three months.

[rani]

Glad to help.

Thanks for the update.

Rani

[jwang]

Hi Ozmaofoz,
The information you gave was very helpful but I'd like some more info. if you don't mind. I'm curious about whether the dentist cleaned your baby's teeth with any implements. The reason I ask is, I'd like to take my 16 month old for a checkup...I know he'll be a handful. Did the dentist restrain your baby in any way? Will your baby have to be sedated in order for the cavity to be filled? Thanks in advance.

[ozmaofoz]

Restrain? As in tied him down or something? No. She had me hold him while she held his head in her lap so she could see his teeth, and he did cry and scream, but I didn't feel that she was aggressive or unkind in ANY way. She was also very positive, and did not guilt or shame me about night-nursing.

She asked me to bring him back for the fluoride treatments (which is just brushing fluoride) onto the soft teeth every three months. She was not gungho about sedating him or filling cavities at this point. She just wants to arrest the decay, protect his adult teeth as they are formed in his head, and keep an eye on his teeth until he's older. Eventually we'll have to fix the broken tooth, but she seemed to think that was a ways off as it is only chipped and he only has two teeth with visible cavities.

I think you should just go! If you need to talk about boundaries with her, she seems like someone who would understand. You should take your kid to the dentist ASAP, really. I've been putting off going for 6 months now (my son got a lot of teeth early) and look what happened!

[jwang]

Hello Ozmaofoz,
Thank you for your detailed post. I night nurse too, so I may also encounter similar problems with regard to cavities. I will arrange an appointment now that I know that the dentist is gentle.

[ozmaofoz]

Good for you. She seemed extended breastfeeding "neutral" and understood my reasons for BFing. I don't nurse him at all at night anymore, after I've brushed his teeth. He gets both a sippy cup and a bottle of water since he's in that toddler phase of needing/wanting choices in everything. He seems to be doing well and the DH has taken over getting him to bed.

I do nurse him in the morning when he comes back to bed with us because it gives me an extra hour or two of sleep. I brush his teeth and give him water as soon as we get up.

The best thing about the visit was her showing me how to get in there and really brush every tooth. My son still screams, but he's over it the second I let him go so I think it's not that big a deal.

Good luck, Mama, and happy breastfeeding!