Pediatric Dentists Vs. Family Dentists: Know the Difference

Pediatric Dentists Vs. Family Dentists: Know the Difference

Nov 09, 2021

Are you, like most parents, wondering whether your child needs dental care from a pediatric dentist or whether your family dentist is appropriate for their needs? Unfortunately, it indicates you aren’t aware of the differences between pediatric dentists and family dentists. This article provides all the information you need about the differences between the two to help you make an informed decision for your child to ensure they have beautiful smiles throughout their lives.

 

Educational Differences between the Two Professionals

 

Pediatric dentists and family dentists both qualify from the same dental school and earn their state dental licenses. In addition, family dentists continue their education by attending seminars and programs to gain more knowledge about various fields of dentistry.

 

While family dentists begin practicing soon after completing their education, pediatric dentists continue their education for another two to three years in a residency program learning advanced diagnostic and surgical processes besides child psychology and clinical management. Pediatric dentists also acquire training in oral pathology for children, child-related pharmacology, radiology, children’s development, managing oral-facial trauma, and caring for patients with special needs. In short, dentists providing pediatric dental services are specialists in dealing with children and their growth-related problems.

 

Professional Differences between Pediatric Dentists and Family Dentists

 

Family dentists treat patients of all ages, including children and focus on various treatments like dental cleanings and exams, fillings, extractions, root canals, et cetera. Although not specializing in any specific field, family dentists acquire the education and training they need from external sources to provide any treatments their patients need.

 

On the other hand, pediatric dentists are dedicated to children’s dental needs and only accept patients aged one and 18. The services they provide are similar to family dentists but focus on children and not adults.

 

For example, Calgary pediatric dentistry has experience dealing with primary teeth because they understand the anatomy of younger jaws. As they are specialists, they can recognize that the anatomy of a primary tooth is different from a permanent tooth. The dentists at the facility realize how essential it is for children to retain their primary teeth because they help them chew and speak and let their permanent teeth emerge correctly.

 

Pediatric dentists from the dental clinic near me understand how to work with developing mouths and jaws. As a result, they are frequently questioning themselves about how a child’s dental health will grow and intervene when necessary to prevent severe problems. They also have the training to administer anesthesia to children if they need to perform intensive treatments on children’s teeth. Best of all, pediatric dentists are experienced in dealing with dental issues not typically visible in adults.

 

Professional Environment in Both Offices

 

Family dentists create an environment suitable for everyone, including children, in their offices. The equipment they use is standard in dentistry and appropriate for all patients. Family dentists are busy professionals and focus on general dental services instead of concentrating on children. They neither have kid-friendly offices, trained staff to manage children, and the children-specific dental instruments pediatric dentists use frequently. If family dentists cannot handle a child for any reason, they do not hesitate to provide a referral to a pediatric dentist if they feel the child will receive better care at a pediatric dentist’s office.

 

On the contrary pediatric dentists being specialists in children’s dentistry, provide appropriate pediatric dental care as children need. Pediatric dental practices have kid-friendly environments welcoming children into their practice and staff fully trained to manage children in the dental office. Pediatric dentists also invest in kid-friendly dental instruments and spend time with children explaining what every device does and why The dentist must use it. At the end of every appointment, pediatric dentists reward their patients as a mark of good behaviour when undergoing dental treatments. Pediatric dentists take pains to make the child realize dental appointments are not scary but fun and encourage them to believe they must look forward to the following dental screening or exam.

 

Family dentists and pediatric dentists are both professionals graduating from the same dental school. Family dentists begin practicing immediately after their education, while pediatric dentists spend more time in dental school to acquire specialist training dealing exclusively with children. Family dentists may encounter challenges coping with difficult children. Still, pediatric dentists will face no such problems if they are ever called to deal with an adult patient in an emergency. The primary difference between the two professionals is the patients they deal with. Full-grown adults are the primary patients of family dentists, while pediatric dentists exclusively deal with children between one and 18. Therefore if you have any confusion in your mind about which professional is better suited for your child, this article should convince you a pediatric dentist is optimal for children.

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