5 year old with deep molar cavity

My 5 year old daughter has a cavity in her last lower back molar tooth.
My general dentist diagnosed it with a digital x-ray and said it was
deep, just nearing the root. We can also visibly see the blackness on
the top of the crown.
This will require local anethesia to numb her mouth during the
procedure. Needless to say, I'm
concerned about the local anethesia for a five year old and about her
temperment during the procedure. Is it safe for a child her age?

xkatx...

You'd know your daughter best and how she would handle things better than
anyone else, really. As far as a local anesthesia, I see no reason to not
go for it. Generally, reactions to things are often less severe the first
time, and you don't know about an allergy until you've come into contact
with something you are allergic to. I, personally, would go with a local.
What other options do you have? No anesthesia? That, I would assume, would
be very hard for an adult to handle, nevermind a 5 year old.
Totally, completely different situation, but I was asked if I had wanted a
local anesthesia or a general for my son after a car accident for a bad
scalp laceration he had. He's 5 years old. This was 2 days after his 5th
birthday. I went with the general, and the risks for that were far higher
than the local, yet I went with the general, KNOWING the risks, and after
the obvious question for the plastic surgeon, "What would you do if it was
your child and you were faced with the decision?" and he didn't hesitate to
say he is aware of potential risks, and he would go with the general, which
would, in the end, cause less pain and trauma than a general.
If you have problems with a local anesthesia, ask the dentist what he or she
would do if it was their child. I see no reason why they wouldn't give you
an honest answer, and maybe that would make you feel better about it? If it
comes down to some slightly possible reaction, but that chance doesn't
outweigh the positives (as in worse dental problems that can and most likely
will cause more pain than needed) then go with it. I, personally, would go
with it. Come to think of it, I had no idea I am terribly allergic to a
bee's sting until I was stung by a small bee (total body size was about the
size of my pinky finger nail) when I was about 15 and had a bad reaction.
Likewise, I never knew I was allergic to nuts until I ate some. Not
everyone stung by bees is allergic, and not everyone who has eaten nuts has
had a reaction. The chances, though, are small for first time, or so I
hear?

Nan...

What about the local are you worried about?
You know her temperament best, so I can't advise you on that, but my 6
yo has had 2 crowns and 2 fillings. She's generally skittish about
any procedure, but she sailed through the dental work with nary a
blink.

enigma...

does your dentist use sodium pentathol gas on the kids he's
working on?
my 5 year old just got done having all 4 bottom molars
removed because of severe decay & all 4 top molars & one front
tooth had fillings. one of the upper molars had a deep root
cavity, but the dentist at least saved the tooth.
our dentist uses sodium pentathol (laughing gas) & novacaine
for these procedures. the extractions were actually the
easier, because Boo reacted badly to the sound of the drill.
that caused us to be referred to a pediatric dentist, which
made Boo think he was being punished for being "bad" at the
dentists. we both disliked the pediatric dentist, so went back
to the regular dentist armed with ear protectors. i'd think a
Walkman or similar would also work, but we use ear protectors
here on the farm all the time so they were available &
familiar. worked for us anyway.

Irrational Number...

Of course it's safe. Children get anesthesia
all the time. Pillbug had a classic case of
baby bottle tooth decay (our fault!) and now
has several fillings and crowns at almost age
3. He got general anesthesia.

My general dentist said we could use him for the filling, or go with a
pediatric dentist whom might be better for this. Would you choose a
general or pediatric dentist? Why?

xkatx...

I would go with the dentist that my child was familiar with and comfortable
with. I don't know your case, but if your daughter has only been to your
family dentist once or twice, she might be no more or less comfortable with
this dentist than she would be with a pediatric dentist. If she's very
comfortable with your current dentist, I would stick with that one. If
she's not very comfortable with the current one, in maybe the case that
she's not been seeing this one very many times, it might not hurt to change
her dentist. Go with whatever she's more familiar with.

Nan...

Frankly, I'd stick with the dentist she knows. I'd prefer that, over
trying to get her used to a strange person.

enigma...

our regular dentist. he's great with kids, my kid likes him
and we were really unimpressed by the pediatric dentist we
were referred to.

Irrational Number...

We went to a pediatric dentist because they deal
with children all the time. Our general dentist
doesn't work on children anyway.

Also, why would a child so young get a deep cavity like this? She
brushes regularly!

xkatx...

But does she brush properly? The way a 5 year old and a 15 or 35 year old
brush their teeth is most likely totally different. At 5, if she brushes on
her own, she just might not be brushing fully and completely properly.
Nothing wrong with that, as she's obviously still learning. I monitor my 5
year old for when he brushes his teeth in the morning and before bed. At
times, he finds his way into the bathroom and brushes his teeth whenever he
feels like it, and I let him do the in between brushes on his own for him to
learn, yet I show him morning and night on how to do it. Also, no one has
perfect teeth to brush, and some teeth might have deeper grooves and such in
them, making it harder, especially at 5, to get at. Diet could also play a
factor, as well as style of brushing and how often!

cara...

I would find a good pediatric dentist. Their offices are more inviting
and less intimidating for kids and they know more tricks for getting
kids through procedures like that. Their equipment, entertainment,
experience, etc is geared for young, scared patients. I don't have
direct experience with kids getting fillings and such, but I do know
that my daughters experiences with a ped dentist have been nothing but
positive.

Nan...

I can't answer this, but we eliminated sticky fruit snacks and fruit
roll ups for our daughter... and it's helped a lot.

enigma...

does she brush well? do you (parents) brush her teeeth or
does she do it herself? how long does she brush for & how many
times per day? what's her diet like?
lee