UPDATED 25-05-18

Baby teeth are designed to fall out on their own as your child develops. The first of these teeth typically start to fall out around the age of 6 or 7. Usually doing so in the same order that they came in. While this is a natural process that you usually don’t need to interrupt, there are times when a removal of these teeth needs to occur in order to protect your child’s dental health.

When Baby Teeth Need to Be Removed

When it comes to children’s dental health, the best way to keep your child’s teeth healthy is by taking a proactive approach. Since baby teeth are designed to fall out in the same order that they came in, you should look for any signs that this pattern is being interrupted. This could lead to lead to the development of crowding in the mouth or other frustrating misalignment issues. These issues would typically require braces or other orthodontic solutions to correct. While we at Kinder Smiles offer such treatments, it’s better sometimes to get these teeth removed before they cause damage to the rest of your child’s teeth.

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It’s also important that your child loses all of these baby teeth by around 13 years old at the latest. If they go more than two years past this age without losing all of their initial teeth, damage could occur to the permanent teeth or these teeth could shift into odd placements. In order to identify when your child’s initial teeth should fall out, pay close attention to the following schedule:

By ages 6-8, the upper and lower central primary incisors should fall out

Once these teeth have fallen out, the upper and lower lateral incisors are the next to fall out

By ages 8-10, there is typically a small break between when the remainder of these initial teeth fall out, usually stretching from 1-2 years before the process resumes

By ages 10-13, the lower canines and initial molars will fall out

Once the first molars have fallen out, the upper canines are the next to go, followed by the lower and upper molars

Alongside the standard problems caused by a delay in these initial teeth falling out during the timetable when they’re supposed to, there are a variety of other reasons that a baby tooth will need to be extracted. An accidental trauma could occur that might expedite the need for the tooth to fall out. Although less common, cavities can appear within a baby tooth that would require the tooth to be pulled. Which is why it’s important that your child practices good oral hygiene by brushing and flossing at least twice each day. No matter the reason, an extraction is a very simple procedure.

How to Prepare Your Child to Have Their Teeth Removed

If you believe that your child should have one or more of their primary teeth removed, it’s important that they’re ready to have this procedure done. A tooth extraction is in no way dangerous for your child’s dental or physical health. Many children, especially those of a younger age, are frightened by any visit to the dentist. As such, you should do what you can to calm their nerves beforehand.

Here at Kinder Smiles, our orthodontist team is highly trained and reputable. You can be confident that we will provide your child with exemplary care during the tooth extraction process. Beforehand, you’ll want to be calm but honest when speaking with your child about what’s to follow. Don’t let them see that you might be anxious, as they will follow your lead. You should also tell them that, though there may be a small amount of pain. The area where the tooth is being removed will be numbed. They’ll feel hardly any discomfort until after the procedure is finished. Also be sure to remind them that you will be beside them during the extraction.

Want to Know the Best Part?

Once the procedure has been completed and your child has arrived safely at home, they’ll be feeling somewhat out of it. TV and ice cream are highly recommended remedies while your child is recovering. A lot of drooling will take place with a tooth removal. This is mostly due to the fact that the area around the pulled tooth is numb. This can be solved with some paper towels tucked into their shirt like a bib. For the next few days after the tooth has been removed, they should only eat soft foods, such as yogurt, ice cream, hello, or applesauce. If you stick to these foods, your child’s mouth will heal right on schedule.

Teeth Removed Early – What’s the bottom line?

There are a wide array of benefits towards having these initial teeth removed early. If pulled at an appropriate time, later complications can be avoided. And there are hardly any downsides to having a baby tooth pulled early. If your child has already started to experience crowding issues with any permanent teeth that have erupted, an extraction of some of their remaining primary teeth won’t be enough to solve these crowding problems but can help alleviate some of the issues and keep further damage from occurring.

Pulling these baby teeth early will also allow orthodontists like ours to guide the development patterns of your child’s permanent teeth. This ensures they erupt in the exact positions that they’re supposed to, which could help your child avoid needing braces in the future. It’s important to understand that every child develops in a different way and at different times. This is why it’s important to discuss whether or not your child requires an extraction with your orthodontist. Do this even before you suspect that a tooth removal might be necessary. If the orthodontist can catch a problem early, there’s a chance that further complications might be avoided.

Contact us today at Kinder Smiles if you have any questions about children’s dental health or would like to schedule an appointment.

KinderSmiles Pediatric Dentistry and Orthodontics

400 Kinderkamack Rd

Oradell, NJ 07649

Phone: 201-262-0211

Does My Child Need [Baby Teeth] Removed?

Dr Engel holds a speciality license in pediatric dentistry from New Jersey and New York. He also has attained sedation certification, which allows for in-office oral sedation options, and he’s on staff at Hackensack University Medical Center. As an attending pediatric dentist at HUMC, Dr Engel retains operating room privileges, allowing for an array of treatment modalities and anaesthesia options.