When a Little Tooth Has a Big Toothache

The toothache your child already has is usually the worst part of the whole experience. Treatment happens on a fully numbed tooth, at a gentle pace, with nitrous oxide available for nervous kids. Most children are surprised by how uneventful it is, and hugely relieved when the ache is gone.

Sometimes that is the right call, and we'll tell you when it is. But a baby tooth lost early leaves a gap that neighboring teeth drift into, which can crowd out the adult tooth and create orthodontic problems later. If extraction is the better path, a space maintainer keeps that from happening, either way, you'll get an honest recommendation, not an upsell.

Gentle pacing, tell-show-do, and nitrous oxide get the vast majority of kids through pulp therapy comfortably right here in our office. For the small number of very difficult cases that truly need general anesthesia, we're upfront about it: we refer to a pediatric specialist who is set up for it, and we help coordinate the care.