Early Childhood Caries
Tooth decay is the most common chronic disease of childhood. This can occur in infants and children as a very progressive form referred to as Early Childhood Caries (ECC). Early childhood caries, previously known as nursing caries, baby bottle syndrome, and baby bottle tooth decay, is a severe condition that needs to be addressed with parents before their infant’s first tooth erupts. ... Educating parents on the cause and prevention of this serious problem will lead to better oral hygiene home care, which is an important habit to start early to ensure the oral health of the child into the future. Dental caries occur when the combination of certain bacteria, foods usable by the bacteria and susceptible tooth surfaces that are in contact for a continual period of time with the bacterial by-products that will demineralize the tooth structure. Early childhood caries are a rampant form of dental caries in the primary teeth of infants and young children. ... So consequently, any food or drink in a babys mouth stays there many hours and promotes the caries disease process. ... Another insidious cause of early childhood caries is the sugar in the medications that are prescribed for infants and toddlers. ... Early childhood caries can start soon after the first tooth appears. One important warning sign of the caries disease are "white spot lesions". ... There are 4 different stages or classification of early childhood caries. ... The caries causing bacteria are not present in an infant’s mouth; they usually are transferred to the child. The danger of infecting an infants teeth is increased when the mother already has the caries disease herself.