Pediatric Dentist In El Cajon
San Diego Children's Dentistry is a modern, family-friendly pediatric dental clinic, specialized in dentistry for kids.
Our office is designed with kids and families in mind. It is it designed to feel like an extension of your home and not like a regular doctors’ office. From the homey living room lobby, to the iPads and TVs above the chairs, and even the comfortable treatment benches where kids can relax while they receive treatment, your children will feel right at home.
Meet Our Pediatric Dentist
Proudly serving the El Cajon, and San Diego Metro area.
Dental Insurance Options
San Diego Children’s Dentistry accepts most insurance plans, major credit cards, and even an in-office savings plan.
When to Bring Children to the Dentist
You might not think it’s important to take kids to the dentist until permanent teeth start to appear, or at least until they have the motor skills to handle a toothbrush, but this is a mistake. The earlier you introduce your children to a pediatric dentist and dental care in general, the more comfortable they’ll be with dental visits, and the better chance they’ll have to develop healthy habits for life.
When should you visit the qualified dentists at San Diego Children’s Dentistry? According to the American Dental Association (ADA), a child’s “first dental visit should occur within six months after the baby’s first tooth appears, but no later than the child’s first birthday”.
As a parent, you face a steep learning curve that includes feeding, bathing, and caring for your infant. While dental care may take the back seat initially, it’s important that you don’t neglect your children’s oral health.
You should start cleaning their mouths right away with a soft, clean cloth, and begin brushing with a baby toothbrush when their first teeth erupt. Soon after, it’s time for a first dental visit, where the caring and qualified pediatric dentists at San Diego Children’s Dentistry can guide you through what to expect, how to care for your baby’s teeth, and how often to schedule visits.
The Importance of Teaching Good Oral Hygiene Habits
Caring for children’s baby teeth is more important than you can imagine. As a parent, you naturally want the best for your kids, and San Diego Children’s Dentistry is here to help, starting with instilling good oral hygiene habits like proper brushing and flossing after meals.
Why is proper dental care from a young age so important? There are several reasons. First and foremost, you don’t want your kids to suffer, and cavities can cause them pain and even lead to problems with speech development or eating.
In addition, oral health concerns like tooth decay and gum disease can impact the health of future, permanent teeth that will replace baby teeth when they fall out. In order to ensure optimal oral health for life, you need to instill good oral hygiene habits in children early. With the help of your talented pediatric dentist at San Diego Children’s Dentistry, you can get the advice you need to help your children learn and practice good oral hygiene now and in the future.
A Comfortable and Pleasant Experience for Your Children
It’s only natural to worry about how your kids will respond to the dentist during their first visit, but keep in mind that your anxieties could transfer to your children. It’s important that you remain calm so we have a chance to show your children just how pleasant a dental visit can be.
Our offices are designed to be kid friendly, with a warm and welcoming atmosphere that puts children at ease. In addition, the entire team at San Diego Children’s Dentistry is committed to creating a comfortable and pleasant experience for your kids.
Our kind, patient, and gentle staff offers not only comprehensive dental care, but also a compassionate demeanor intended to help kids remain calm and comfortable, and even enjoy themselves. With your cooperation, we have the best opportunity to provide the essential dental care your children need in a safe and welcoming environment that they’ll look forward to visiting.
Children’s Dentistry
Getting your child acquainted with oral hygiene and comfortable with a pediatric dentist is incredibly important if you want them to maintain great oral health throughout their lives, but it’s not all on you to make that happen. It’s also on the dentist you bring them to.
Read MoreYou need to ensure the pediatric dentist you choose offers both comforting care and a wealth of dental knowledge to their young patients so they can maintain their healthy smiles and learn the importance of brushing and flossing. Dr. Chan and the team at San Diego Children’s Dentistry offer exactly that.
Here’s what you can expect when you choose us.
A Comforting Child-Friendly Environment
Many dental offices are not exactly welcoming to children in terms of their design, décor, and overall feel. Children are particularly sensitive to their environments, and bringing them to a dentist that doesn’t decorate with them in mind may be enough to start them on a path toward a lifetime of dental anxiety.
At San Diego Children’s Dentistry, we’ve designed our office with your child and your family in mind. It’s meant to be warm and cozy as if it were your own home, rather than cold and unwelcoming like some medical offices can be.
We’ve got a swing set and slide outside and TVs and iPads above our chairs to ease your child into receiving the care they need.
An Understanding and Empathetic Staff
It’s not enough to have an inviting office. Children’s dental care requires a whole team of people who not only take great care to offer high-quality dental services but understand the needs of both the child and their parents. At San Diego Children’s Dentistry, we strive to make you, your child, and your entire family as comfortable as possible.
A Parent-Friendly Environment
If you’re not comfortable at our office, it’s doubtful that your child will be. That’s why we prioritize both children and parents at San Diego Children’s Dentistry. Feel free to ask any questions about your child’s treatment or to come with them into the office to help you both feel more at ease.
Dental Care for Kids
A kids dentist isn’t all that different from an adult dentist in terms of the services provided. However, certain types of treatment are more prevalent in pediatric dentistry. Below are the services we offer at our pediatric dentist in El Cajon.
Preventive Care
Children start out with a clean slate when it comes to their oral health, and the main objective of a kids' dentist is to keep it that way with preventive care. Our young patients come in for regular visits where they’ll receive an oral exam to ensure that their teeth are coming in right and there are no cavities or other issues that need attention.
During a routine dental appointment, your child will also receive a teeth cleaning, which helps prevent things like gum disease and tooth decay, and will keep their smile looking healthy and bright.
They can also receive fluoride treatment, which helps strengthen their teeth and give them extra defense against anything that threatens to wear away at their tooth enamel.
Early Assessment
A big part of children’s dental care is in determining how your child’s teeth are going to develop and offering both information and a treatment plan when there are issues with bite and alignment. This is one of the many reasons why it’s critical to get your child to a children's dentist early and often.
Dental Sealants
Dental sealants are a great way to protect your child’s molars from developing cavities. This simple treatment involves your children's dentist painting on a thin layer of protective material that fills in the recessed areas of their back teeth that tend to collect germs and food debris.
Dental sealants can last for years and are highly effective when combined with a good oral hygiene routine.
Restorative Dentistry
Even the best oral care routine may not be enough to avoid cavities and other issues, which is why regular dental visits are incredibly important. When your little one needs restorative services, we can provide them with comforting care that will have them smiling again in no time.
Fillings may be the most common restorative procedure in all of kids' dentistry, but they’re not the only thing we offer. Sometimes a traumatic dental injury occurs, and a broken tooth must be fixed with the help of a dental crown. Other times, small defects can be treated in order to perfect their smile.
Sedation Dentistry
Despite our best efforts (and yours), you may still find that your little one is uneasy when receiving dental treatment. When that’s the case, there’s always the option of sedation dentistry.
With some gentle sedatives, your child can be put at ease, and their treatment can be completed quickly and easily. The treatment plan is totally in your hands, so feel free to ask about our sedation options.
Emergency Dental Services
Childhood is full of little accidents. Sometimes, those accidents can be a bit bigger than usual and may require expedient care from a kids' dentist. If you and your little one should find yourselves in such a situation, we can be there to provide them the care they need to feel safe and comfortable once again.
It’s not always going to be a traumatic dental injury that requires emergency care, either. If your child has an unexplained toothache or swelling, a lost filling or crown, or anything else that’s causing them pain and you distress, make sure to reach out to us, and we’ll help you determine the best course of action.
Dental Education
One of the most important aspects of kids' dentistry is providing children with the knowledge and motivation they need to care for their teeth throughout their lives.
It can be exceedingly difficult to get a child on board with brushing, flossing, and seeing their dentist regularly, but with the help of the team at San Diego Children’s Dentistry, they may be a little more enthusiastic about the process.
What Does It Take to Become a Pediatric Dentist?
Because pediatric dentistry requires special skills that extend beyond the realm of your standard dental services, a dentist who wants to treat children must undergo further schooling once they’ve received their degree and completed dental school.
That schooling involves a graduate program in which the student must undergo a residency in pediatric dentistry, which takes an extra two years to complete. This extra schooling means your dentist has acquired a ton of new knowledge and many important skills on their journey to becoming a qualified kids dentist in El Cajon.
The Importance of a Pediatric Dentist
Pediatric dentists aren’t just schooled on the most common treatments children tend to require. They’re also trained to work with kids in a way that makes them feel safe and comfortable while they receive the care they need. This is perhaps the most significant element distinguishing a children's dentist from an adult one.
It’s important to select a dentist who prioritizes your child’s comfort over all else so they can continue to feel comfortable during dental visits throughout the rest of their lives.
