- My family has had bad teeth for generations.
- My daughter had 3 cavities on her front teeth when she was 1 year old.
- Her dentist suggested a treatment to prevent cavities, but her teeth turned black.
My family has bad teeth. They have choppers lined with crowns and fillings, and open their mouths to return a silvery smile. I am confident that
Don’t get me wrong, we brush and floss just like them, but our teeth are soft and delicate, with crevices that welcome stuck sugar grains and bits of meat. I’ve kept this “family curse” to a minimum and have only a handful of fillings so far. I’m here.
As a baby she would nap in my arms while I sat on the couch. I often wiped food stains off her cheeks and gently brushed a few teeth with a rubber baby toothbrush. When Elle was about 1 year old, I started brushing what I thought was plaque on her front teeth, but it didn’t come off.
“Oh no,” I thought, “hollow.”
i took ell for her first dental I’ll visit soon after that — and tall dentist I confirmed with her kind eyes that she was small cavity 3 front teeth.
It felt like a failure to let my 1-year-old have bad teeth.I was also worried that this would mean that Elle would have more cavities.Our dentist offered to put diamine silver fluoride On my daughter’s front teeth to stop the growth of cavities until she’s old enough to have fillings without general anesthesia or until her baby teeth fall out.
Diamine silver fluoride is safe and effective
My daughter’s dentist explained that SDF is safe, painless, and costs a fraction of the cost of fillings. Still, I wanted to do my own research, putting safety first. I had to prioritize the worse list of side effects to make sure I wasn’t skipping the anesthesia risk.
Lynn Gargano, clinical director of pediatric dentistry at NYU Langone’s Family Health Centers, confirmed that SDF is safe.
“Scientific reviews and clinical trials have not reported any adverse events or serious side effects in either children or adults,” she says, adding that the known side effects are minor, such as short-term gum irritation and a metallic taste. He added that it was just an annoyance.
“SDF has been proven to stop corruption up to 80% of the time,” says Gargano. “In my practice, SDF is a viable alternative for very young children and patients with special administrative considerations.”
After discussing it with my husband, we decided that SDF was the best choice, and the next week Elle’s dentist brushed the tops of her teeth with something like a small plastic stick. We were in and out of the office in just a few minutes.
Teeth blackened due to treatment
Prior to applying SDF, my dentist warned me several times that this solution would permanently stain the cavities, so some of Elle’s teeth would remain black unless they were filled afterwards. will be He said some parents weren’t thrilled about this, but I shrugged off his warnings.
Still, SDF as a caries treatment is relatively new in the United States.In Japan, it has been used for oral care for a long time. over 50 years.
“Did she eat Oreos?” asked another parent after seeing my daughter laughing on the playground.
Occasionally, I nod and smile, blaming the dark spots on the cream-filled cookies. I’ve frowned, but most of the time other parents empathize with tough decisions. We are happy to talk to them about our experience.
When my pediatric dentist warned me about SDF stains, I knew he was worried that I wouldn’t like the look of Elle’s teeth. I don’t do it, and I don’t care about the appearance at all. Actually I like it. It makes her look like my side of her family.
