When Did Y'all Schedule that First Dentist Appt?

PineApple85 · June 2014

I know there's a similar thread further down, but my issue is a little different and I didn't want to hijack the other mother's question.

DS will be 2 in few weeks and I'm looking into taking him in for a first visit. He has no dental problems and we brush his teeth twice a day. I just want him looked at to make sure I'm brushing adequately since he does squirm and fight a little and I want to make sure everything looks ok since SO and SS have had dental problems (both needed braces, and I think SS has already had a cavity or two and he's not quite 16).

The problem I'm facing is the only two pediatric dentists in town are out of network for his insurance and all of the other recommendations that I've been given won't see him until he's 3. So I'm basically looking at paying cash out of pocket. The only place I'm seeing such importance placed on a visit before three is the websites of the pediatric dentists, which, let's face it, is good business if nothing else. Everywhere else, the general dentistry practices and other moms I know IRL, all say it isn't necessary if there are no other problems until all of his teeth are in (we're still waiting on his 2nd molars).

So what say you, mothers of the interwebs? Thanks!

JENandJEH · June 2014

He went for the first time a couple of weeks ago...so 2 years and 3 months. They counted his teeth, the dentist poked around in there, and did a fluoride treatment and he was fine with it because he saw his brother do it and wanted to do what he was doing. We didn't have any concerns about his teeth but DS1's dentist said they like to start seeing them at/around age 2 just to get them used to the dentist. They take it slow and don't push if they are scared. They showed him the tools they use to clean teeth and he loved the water squirter. Most of my friends also start taking their kids around age 2 and some don't use a pediatric dentist and just take them to their adult dentist.

baloneydisc · June 2014

Our ped and our dentist both recommended going around 3, unless we had concerns about something. Based on that we haven't been yet, but will probably schedule an appointment with our regular dentist soon.

bitsybubbles7 · June 2014

We're taking lo for his first "appointment" (it's more of a "Hey! Look, Mommy is getting her teeth cleaned. You can sit in the chair and if you let us clean them cool, if not, well we'll try again later.") in a week. He'll be like 27 months. Since this is basically a test run, I'm okay waiting until he is three for his next one (we're waiting on molars too).

Cherryblossoms07 · June 2014

I took the kids for the first time at 18 months. Their current pediatric dentist is out of network (there are no in network dentists close to our new location); we only pay $6 out of pocket a checkup. Any extensive work would be pretty costly out of pocket. However, when I called my insurance company about finding a local pediatric dentist they told me I can always change dentists to one that is in network if a costly procedure would be necessary. So, that is what we decided to do for the time being since we had such a great experience with their first pediatric dentist.

emberlee3 · June 2014

I guess I am posting on this board now, since DD turned 2 last week

I waited until 3 yo for DS. I am going to schedule an appointment for DD sometime before she is 2.5 yo. Maybe this summer.

I don't even have the kids on our dental insurance because it wasn't worth it just for cleanings. I think I will add them for 2015, since there are 2 of them needing dental care now. We have a healthcare FSA, so I use that for DS's cleanings.

SusieBW · June 2014

bitsybubbles7 said:

We're taking lo for his first "appointment" (it's more of a "Hey! Look, Mommy is getting her teeth cleaned. You can sit in the chair and if you let us clean them cool, if not, well we'll try again later.") in a week. He'll be like 27 months. Since this is basically a test run, I'm okay waiting until he is three for his next one (we're waiting on molars too).

Our dentist recommended that we take DD for this kind of "appointment" when she's about 3. I have my next appointment in October or November, and DD is going to come with me to that, so she'll have just turned 3.

Leap08 · June 2014

Both of my girls went for the first time when they were a little more than 2. Our dentist doesn't charge for that first appointment and it is really more about getting them used to going to the dentist.

PineApple85 · June 2014

Thanks for your input, ladies! I'm still on the fence and I'm waiting to hear back from one more local dentist to find out if he'll see my son and he should take my insurance. I have pretty much decided though, that I won't buy dental insurance for this next LO and I may take DS off dental coverage. Especially if I decide to pay OOP for a pediatric dentist. I just didn't expect it to be this difficult!

Us&theBunnies · June 2014

My dentist doesn't see children until they are 1yr, so my son had his first a week or so after his first birthday. They just looked in his mouth, made sure he was comfortable with the whole thing and that the teeth he had looked to be coming in fine. They gave him a rubber (plastic) duck and he was thrilled and thought the whole thing was hilarious.

His second checkup is next month (he turned two recently but this was the best date/time option with #2 expected any day now), where I'm sure it will be similar just with the newish ADA comments of using a rice sized drop of fluoride toothpaste at the first tooth.

Aurora_Borealis · June 2014

This is a tough one. I took DD for the first time around 20 months because I suspected she had a chipped tooth (she does). It's a fancy pediatrics practice, but thankfully in network.

If I hadn't thought anything was wrong and the only in-network dentists available to me only accepted patients at 3 years old, I probably would have waited.

mmooki · June 2014

I took dd just before she turned 2. It was not too bad. They counted her teeth, checked them and that's it.

I have terrible teeth and so do my parents. Dh doesn't have a cavity but the rest of his family all have dentures! So I thought it was in her best interest to have her teeth checked. Dentist said her teeth look great and are coming in just the way they are supposed to. Bit of a relief since she turned 1 before she cut her first tooth.

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