Your child sets the pace here. First visits are kept short, and every tool is named and shown before it goes anywhere near a tooth, so the chair stops being a mystery.
Cleanings, sealants and fluoride all happen in the same High Street office where you, and even your own parents, can be seen. That means one trip and one team who knows the whole family. If you have put off your own care, nobody will lecture you about that either.
A child's visit here starts with a tour of the chair, the light and the little mirror, each one named before it is used. Then comes a gentle cleaning and a look at how the teeth are coming in, with digital images on the screen so you and your child see what the dentist sees. Short visits are the rule here, not a shortcut.
Learn more about Pediatric dental care
The back teeth have deep grooves a toothbrush bristle cannot reach, which is where most cavities in children start. A sealant is a thin, clear coating painted into those grooves and hardened with a light. There is no drilling and no numbing, so it is one of the easiest things a nervous child will ever have done at the dentist.
Learn more about Sealants
Fluoride is not added to a child's visit out of habit. You get a plain answer about whether it makes sense for your child, based on what the X-rays show and whether your home drinks city water or well water, which can carry very different amounts of fluoride. When it is worth doing, it takes only a minute or two.
Learn more about Fluoride treatmentYou do not have to commit to a treatment plan to book a visit. Tell the office what is going on and they will find you a time.
The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry recommends a first visit by your child's first birthday, or within six months of the first tooth coming in. That early visit is short and mostly about getting comfortable: a look at the teeth, a turn in the chair, and time for your questions. If your child is older and has never been, that is fine too. Nobody will make you feel bad about it.
No. Dr. Shahir Khalil is a general dentist, and in Ohio the title of pediatric dentist is reserved for dentists with advanced specialty training in treating children. Routine children's care like cleanings, exams, sealants and fluoride is everyday work for a family dentist. If your child ever needs something that belongs with a pediatric specialist, you will be told why and referred.
Visits move at your child's pace. Every instrument is named and shown before it is used, and first visits are kept short on purpose so the visit ends before the nerves do. If your child needs a break, they get one. The aim is a second visit your child does not dread, which matters more than finishing everything on day one.
Even a careful brusher cannot clean the deep grooves on the back teeth, because the grooves are often narrower than a single toothbrush bristle. That is where most cavities in children begin. Sealants fill those grooves with a thin protective coating, with no drilling or numbing. They are usually placed on the permanent back molars, which typically come in around age 6 and again around age 12.
Yes. Premier Family Dental is a family practice, so your child, you and your own parents can all be seen at the same office on High Street in Wadsworth. One team gets to know your family's history, instead of your child being handed to a separate office. The office is open Monday through Thursday.