Pediatric dentistry is the field of dentistry that specialized in providing oral healthcare to infants and children through adolescence and patients with special healthcare needs. This age-defined specialty, formerly called pedodontics, provides both primary and comprehensive preventive and therapeutic dental care. One goal of pediatric dentistry is to establish trust and confidence in a child through pleasant visits to the dental office, to help children feel good about visiting the dentist, and to teach them how to care for their teeth.
A pediatric dentist is a dentist who prevents, evaluates, diagnoses, and treats diseases of the oral cavity and related structures in infants and children through adolescence. A pediatric dentist can prescribe drugs, x-rays and devices. Because some oral diseases and abnormalities can indicate other health issues, a pediatric dentist my refer patients to their pediatrician or a specialist for further evaluation or treatment.
Pediatric dentistry is a recognized American Dental Association specialty of dentistry. Pediatric dentists complete two to three years of additional specialized training, after the required four years of dental school, to prepare them for treating a wide variety of children's dental problems. They are also trained and qualified to care for patients with medical, physical or mental disabilities.
Physicians in this specialty treat patients suffering from numerous diseases and illnesses, but some of the most common are dental injuries, knocked out tooth, early childhood caries, crowded or crooked teeth, bite problems, TMJ (temporomandibular joint) disorders, cavities, tooth decay, and gingivitis.
Once properly diagnosed, practitioners can perform numerous procedures on patients including dental cleanings, fillings, dental extractions, sealants, fluoride treatment, enamel fluorosis, custom-fitted mouth guards, emergency dental car, malocclusion identification, microabrasion, space maintainers, and preventative home care education.
To diagnose patients with possible illnesses and diseases, specialists will often perform one of many tests including early childhood caries risk assessment and dental imaging.
Doctor density varies by specialty and location. The United States has 5,134 practicing pediatric dentists. Broken out by state, pediatric dentistry doctor density in Alabama is 91, in Alaska is 14, in Arizona is 118, in Arkansas is 42, in California is 650, in Colorado is 104, in Connecticut is 105, in Delaware is 13, in District of Columbia is 25, in Florida is 269, in Georgia is 178, in Hawaii is 38, in Idaho is 23, in Illinois is 165, in Indiana is 116, in Iowa is 57, in Kansas is 33, in Kentucky is 98, in Louisiana is 73, in Maine is 13, in Maryland is 137, in Massachusetts is 199, in Michigan is 100, in Minnesota is 70, in Mississippi is 48, in Missouri is 62, in Montana is 13, in Nebraska is 43, in Nevada is 45, in New Hampshire is 24, in New Jersey is 234, in New Mexico is 24, in New York is 423, in North Carolina is 150, in North Dakota is 7, in Ohio is 187, in Oklahoma is 44, in Oregon is 83, in Pennsylvania is 186, in Rhode Island is 18, in South Carolina is 70, in South Dakota is 14, in Tennessee is 116, in Texas is 418, in Utah is 69, in Vermont is 10, in Virginia is 121, in Washington is 139, in West Virginia is 15, in Wisconsin is 74, and in Wyoming is 7.
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