Tips from a colleague: Effective moisture control in children

Treating children requires patience. Dentists have to treat children and talk to them in a different way compared with adults. Some children are afraid of the dental visit and others cannot sit still for very long. In many cases, a few simple tricks and tools are all that is needed to create a calming atmosphere for treating young patients in potentially problematic situations.

Dr Tatiana Repetto-Bauckhage who is a dentist at Vivadent AG in Schaan/Liechtenstein has some useful advice for you.

Dr Tatiana Repetto-Bauckhage: Throughout my professional career I have always dealt with children. In my home country of Peru, my mother who is a pediatrician referred many young patients to me. Later on, when I was working in Germany my boss at that time always assigned the children to me. 

Hyperactiveness and other difficult cases

Many of these small patients were considered “difficult cases” My very first young patient was hyperactive. The eight-year-old boy would not or could not sit still. He kept on asking me questions and he wanted to touch everything. My job was to seal the fissures in his teeth and I had explain to him what I was going to do before I started. It looked like I was in for a rough time.

Sitting still for 10 minutes

Fortunately, the situation diffused itself very quickly. I introduced myself to the boy and explained the different steps of the treatment to him. I also told him that he would have to hold still for about 10 minutes for the treatment to be a success.

The boy liked the treatment

Next, I showed him OptraGate Junior and explained to him that it would allow me to get a better look at the inside of his mouth and keep his teeth dry at the same time, which is absolutely essential in fissure sealing. The boy listened to me attentively. The white disc-shaped device intrigued him from the start. When I had finished inserting it, he relaxed and sat back in the chair and I was able to seal the fissures in his teeth without any problem. The young patient did not move once. He did not interrupt me and he bravely kept his mouth open.

A relaxed atmosphere for everyone

This eight-year-old was not the only patient that I was able to treat successfully with the help of OptraGate Junior. I also used it when I attached brackets or applied fluoride varnishes in children. Everyone loved OptraGate Junior. My patients were calm, I had a good view of their oral cavity and the teeth remained dry. The treatment was a stress-free experience for everyone involved.

My conclusion: Simple accessories can considerably ease the work of dentists and help make patients feel more comfortable. This is of particular importance and highly beneficial in the treatment of children. Nowadays, I always use OptraGate Junior when I treat young patients. I really like to use OptraGate Junior in the colours pink and blue. I let my patients choose their preferred colour. This makes them feel that they are playing an important part in the treatment.