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Help! My kid’s teeth looks like a shark’s!! Are they healthy teeth? Kits Family Dental answers!

shark

My kid’s teeth are emerging in multiple rows!! Are the teeth healthy?

Baby teeth are supposed to fall out as adult teeth erupt, but it doesn’t always happen in that order.  Sometimes, adult teeth grow in before the baby teeth fall out, and, what’s more, they can grow in behind the existing baby teeth – which, as you can imagine (or not imagine – you can just look above!) looks quite alarming.  Rest assured! This is unsightly, but they are completely normal, healthy teeth.

shark_teeth_child

flickr.com/photos/micheleryan/

Question: Does this mean we need to pull out the baby teeth?”

Answer:  Maybe.

If the two baby teeth are quite loose already, then they do not have to be taken out at the dentist’s office.  Just wiggle them around at home as much as you can to help them fall out sooner.

Once the baby teeth fall out, the two adult teeth will move into the proper position within the arch because the tongue will help to push them forward and into place.

If the two baby teeth aren’t loose at all, and an X-ray confirms that there are still some pretty long and solid roots under the gums, then YES, the two baby teeth will need to be taken out at the dental office.

If your child has mixed dentition (a big word meaning “the arrangement, type, or number of teeth”), be sure to bring them to the dentist regularly so that the sequence in which baby teeth are falling out and adult teeth are growing in can be properly monitored.

In addition, this can be the perfect time for kids that need braces to consult an orthodontist for Phase I treatment – if you need a great referral, we’ve got one!

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