General Anaesthesia for Filling a Cavity?

I have NEVER heard of this. At the most, seems like they would sedate slightly. I see huge red flags here. You are right to question this. Please get a second opinion.
Is this child brushing her/his teeth regularly? Seems odd for a 3 year to have cavities.

Im sorry, but I never saw any reason to fill a baby tooth when it is going to fall out anyway. I guess it is just me but it sounds like a waste of money. My step son's mom had cavities filled and not but 2 months later the teeth fell out.

If there are a LOT of large cavities and your child is very uncooperative in the chair, it would be better to put him under and get them all done at once. It is for extreme cases. I would not feel comfortable doing that for my daughter unless it was in a hospital (no sedation at an office!) But you should get a 2nd opinion, sometimes several short appointments are better than a long one. But I can't stress enough that baby teeth still need to be treated. He will keep some of these teeth until he's 12 years old! That will turn into a huge toothache you can prevent now.
Contact another ped dentist--I recommend Dr. Mary Wells on Western or Dr. Ricky Mendoza on Belmont. Good Luck!

My son had a cavity when he was 3 and our pediatric dentist just numbed it locally. He didn't even suggest general anesthesia. The whole process took about 5 minutes (he had 1 cavity) I would check with your dentist and ask him if you have any other options outside of general anesthesia. I, too, would be worried about that.

M.,

My son had 1 cavity at 2yrs old and his ped dentist did a local and the filling took less then 5 minutes . He now see's him every 6 mnths . I personally would look for a dif dentist but dont ignore the cavity even though it is a baby tooth it can cause problems to thier adult teeth . Im not sure what area you live in , but both my sons see thier dentist out of Res Hospital on Talcott evey 6 mnths . I gotta say I like him as well .

Good luck and if you would like a referrel let me know .

K.

who is the dentist I am in the field so i know some are good and some have questionable practiees

I spotted two cavity teeth when my son was 2 and half. I brought him to see a pediatric dentist. That's his first dental appointment. The dentist confirmed my finding. Both cavities are not big, just tiny black, brown spot. So the dentist told me it would only took him a few mintues to finish. So I scheduled another appointment. My son didn't get any anaesthesia. He hold himself very well when the dentist was working on the first tooth, yet started tear out on the second tooth and became fuzzy. But over all, he hold himself very well.

I don't know how big is the cavity of your son. For my son, after explained him the situation, I think he can hold about 5 to 10 mintues over all. Longer than that, he will feel uncomfortable and scared and won't cooperate.

Hope the above information helps a little and best lucks.

My five year old was just recently put asleep for her dental work. Her dentist tried to fill the cavaties the traditional way with numbing the area first. She was so scared, shaking just for the initial numbing shot. He felt the whole procedure would be to tramatic for a child so young. He sent us home, and a month later we did it while she was alseep. I am glad we chose this route. We were afraid that by letting her know what was going on, she would to scared to go to the dentist next time. It was so easy and she did not even know what was going on. The drilling, sounds and smells are way to scary for a young child to go through and handle. As far as not filling the cavaties, it is very unhealthy to have bad bacteria in your mouth. Definitly get them filled. If you let them go to long, it may become painful for your child too. Good luck, if you have any questions feel free to send me a note.
Karen

My son had a cavity at 2-1/2. Our dentist approached treating him wonderfully and said it also always depends on the child. Nathan, my son, did very good during his exam so he was okay about having his mouth worked on. For the cavity, our dentist was ever so patient and explained each step to nathan and proceeded as normal (the ring around the tooth, the shot in the mouth, etc.) The dentist said if we ran into difficulties, then we could try the general anaesthesia but he wanted to give Nathan the opportunity to try without. Of course, I was there holding Nathan's hand and praising him, etc. I also spent a lot of time talking about getting the "ouie" on his tooth fixed.

Maybe you could ask your dentist if he's willing to take the same approach.

I hope this helps. Good luck to you!

T. B.

That's seems odd considering your son has baby teeth and they will fall off. My son is 4 and he goes to the dentist every 6 months, although he does not have a cavity he has a tooth in the front that is hurt. All they do is watch it until it falls off. General anethesia on a 3 year old seems too serious I would definitely consult with another pediatric dentist.

Hi there!! I certainly am no dentist, but I know my son has cavities, and has in his back two molars for about two years now. THe other thing as to why we don't remeber getting aneshtia as kids for fillings, is that we did not go into see the dentisit until we were in kindergarten, as opossed to them reccomending 1 to 3 years of age now. My dentisit explained to me that most children are fine with a local once they are five or so. Our dentist and I discussed getting as close to five or six as possible...and only filling them if they became really bad before then. He said at his last visit: nearly six months ago now, that we would reacess the situation at each check up and take it from there. I also know that he only likes to use general anesthia on rare occasion. His name is Dr. Khurana and he is at valley view dental in Romeoville...specializes in pediatric dentistry. Good luck with your decision.

Wow, that seems crazy to me. When my son had a cavity at age 3 or 4, my dentist filled it without any anaesthesia at all, and he didn't cry a bit. It was not a deep cavity and she said he wouldn't feel it, and he didn't. If they are deeper, I'm sure you'd need something, but general anaesthesia is a really big thing - seems like there would be other options. At the very least, I'd go get another opinion.

Just wanted to let you know that I was put under general anesthesia by my pediatric dentist, for dental work when I was 3 years old. The dentist performed the work at Children's Memorial, where I stayed overnight after the procedure.

Being so young, all I remember is feeling scared when they put the mask over my face to put me under, then waking up with the IV in my arm, which I wasn't thrilled about. But I'm sure my mom was in the room.

I haven't had any dental issues with my son yet, so I don't know what common procedure is for children now, but my experience nearly 30 years ago seems consistent with what you are having done with your child now. Hope my experience eases your mind.

I worked at a Pediatric Dental office for a few years. The doctor would not put children under for cavities. He would give them a little nitrous or a little pink mixture that would just relax them. I forget now what it was called. From my experience the only reason children would even get "put under" was if they had a behavioral problem. Other then that their should be no reason for your child to be put under general anastasia.

Also, I see a few posters don't understand why baby teeth need to be filled. Well it depends. If you let a cavity go for too long it can end up going into the nerve and your child could end up in extreme pain. Also, it could do damage to the adult tooth budding underneath the baby tooth. I have been in the Dental field a long time and I have seen so many of these cases. But if the tooth is going to fall out within the next year or so, most dentists will not fill the tooth.

Hi M.,
I am going thru the same dental problem (general anesthesia) with my 3 year old. Do you mind telling me what you decided to do, and how it went. My son had his first checkup this morning and he has several cavities.

Thanks,
T.

It is still important to fill baby teeth if there are cavities but going under general is a bit odd to me. What is his reasoning for it? How many cavities does she have? It really shouldn't take 2 hours and local novacaine should do the trick. Would they allow you in the room with her to help calm her? Or split up the # of sessions? I to think a 2nd opinion would be best.

I also am having a similar experience. My son is also 3 and they recommended putting him under. I am determined to find a better way! I am hopeful that there is a dentist out there who specializes in these cases- someone who can help him through this and actually have a positive experience. I think, if the dentist does a good job, that our children can come away from this learning that they can handle tough things and be proud of themselves. I will let you know what I find!

Dr. Perper, in Buffalo Grove, is excellent. I highly recommend his practice. The hygenist's are great. They really take there time with the kids and move slowly. If your child has multiple cavities, he will do it in several sessions not just one. For my son, the best part is getting all the stickers and he's able to pick out a toy from the drawer. Hope this helps.

My son had 3 or 4 cavities when he was three years old, and I want to share with you our amazing experience! My son apparently has a tooth condition that makes him much more likely to get cavities than an average child, despite brushing and flossing. So, our dentist has said that as long as we monitor him well and catch the cavities when they are little, he should be fine.

I was referred to Dr. Michael Perper, and to date he is the only dentist I have found that takes this unique approach. When kids go there, they are encouraged to play in the playroom, and then build repoir and play games with the dental hygenist and the dentist, so that the appointment is not anxiety provoking, but is a mix of a check-up and fun and games. My son REALLY looks forward to going to the dentist, and he always gets covered in stickers all over his shirt when he leaves which he also loves.

In addition to their "play" approach of working with children, he also is able to fill most cavities without any local anesthesia, shots, or laughing gas. He uses a slow drill, which does not cause any pain. He explained that normal drills create heat which heats the tooth and causes pain and sensitivity, but this slow drill technique does not. The child just hears the noise and some pressure and it kind of tickles them.

Since my son had 3 cavities he had them filled during two visits instead of one. And he actually enjoyed the visit and had no pain. The only caveat is that there are some cavities that are large or close to the root that do need to have anesthesia given. But, I would not agree to put my child under general anesthesia for a cavity, as it is more for the convenience of the dentist. Dr. Perper is a bit of a drive for us, but well worth it.

Dr. Michael Perper
400 W. Dundee Rd
Buffalo Grove, IL
847-541-KIDS (5437)

Hello Concern Mom, I understand what you going thought, but the only difference is that my daughter Micah had 2 cavities and she didn't need anaesthesia. I do know what your going thought because her dentist wanted to but her under but she would but the mask on her face, so she didn't get anaesthesia, she did really while, andI then you son or daughter will do good also. I will keep you in my pray and don't worry everything will be ok M. D. If you believe in God and have faith in ask him to watch over and help you child there this, because without him where would we be. If you want to talk more just let me know Take care and have a happy Monday.
C.