Visiting Our Practice
A dental home for every child

Your Dental Home

Childhood is a crucial stage in a person’s dental development. Most children today feel comfortable visiting the dentist, but some may show signs of fear during their first visit or after a previous negative experience.

Creating a dental home helps build trust and confidence in your child. Dental appointments for children differ greatly from those for adults. We recommend check-ups every six months, although some children may benefit from more frequent visits depending on their individual risk level. We’ll personalise the schedule based on your child’s needs.
These regular visits also allow us to detect early orthodontic issues, enabling less invasive and more effective
treatment when appropriate.

Your Child's First Visit

What to expect and how to prepare your child.

Initial Consultation

The initial consultation is approximately 45 minutes.
A full history and clinical examination (teeth, gums, soft tissues, and occlusion) is performed.
Where necessary, digital radiographs (x-rays) and photographs are taken.
Findings and treatment options are then discussed with you so that an informed decision can be made.
If your child has aspects of autism or sensory sensitivities, please let us know prior to the visit by completing this voluntary [Sensory
Information Form].

How Do We Manage Your Child?

Children differ to adults physically, emotionally and physiologically and their treatment needs to be tailored to cater for these differences. Current research shows that by reducing the patient’s anxiety their pain threshold is increased. Dental care must be adapted for each individual child. 

There are on average 12 factors that are taken into consideration when deciding on a treatment management option for your child.  Some of these factors include:

Age
Previous behaviour with dental care
Child’s temperament and personality which reflects anxiety levels
Current cooperation levels such as - Can they sit still for a certain length of time?
How wide can they open their mouth?
Is moisture control difficult (keeping a tooth dry from saliva to allow a white filling to adhere)?
Can they tolerate having local anaesthetic, rubber dam and handpieces in their mouth?
Do they have a sensitive gag reflex?
Are they sensitive to different tastes and sounds?
How many teeth need treatment?
What type of treatment is needed?