Pit and fissure sealing: Let your child's teeth resist "sugar-coated bullets"

After seeing this picture, you must be wondering, what is this doing? Well, let me tell you, this is the most effective way to prevent tooth decay in children: pit and fissure sealing.

Pit and fissure sealing refers to applying a harmless organic polymer resin to the pits and fissures of teeth without removing tooth tissue . The material enters the pits and fissures by its fluidity and solidifies through light exposure, which can effectively prevent harmful substances from entering the pits and fissures. Pit and fissure sealing is like putting a layer of protective clothing on teeth, protecting them from harmful substances such as bacteria and their metabolites, thereby effectively preventing the occurrence of pit and fissure caries.

Children are the ones who are most suitable for pit and fissure sealing, because they are young and cannot brush their teeth as carefully as adults; secondly, children generally like to eat sweets, soft foods, and sticky foods, which are easy to stick to their teeth; thirdly, the calcification of newly erupted teeth is not complete, so the teeth are more susceptible to erosion and decay. Pit and fissure sealing can be performed after healthy teeth have fully erupted, generally when the deciduous molars are 3 to 4 years old, the first permanent molars are 7 to 9 years old, and the second permanent molars are around 12 years old. In fact, adults can also do pit and fissure sealing, but the prerequisite is to meet the corresponding conditions.

Practice has proved that pit and fissure sealant is painless, non-traumatic, safe and simple. As long as the pit and fissure sealant is kept intact on the tooth surface, it can effectively protect children's teeth. Generally speaking, the sealing time for a single tooth is about 10 minutes.

Special reminder

Pit and fissure sealing is not a one-time thing. Bacteria can penetrate any hole. Therefore, it is very important to have regular checkups after pit and fissure sealing. Check every six months after pit and fissure sealing. If there is any fall-off, it needs to be re-sealed; if caries is found in the early stage, it should be repaired in time. In addition, pit and fissure sealing can greatly reduce the chance of caries on the occlusal surface of the teeth, but it has no preventive effect on adjacent surface caries. Therefore, you still need to brush your teeth carefully after pit and fissure sealing.

The article comes from: Tangshan People's Hospital Oral Clinic Center--Zhao Hong