Dental Services

Nitrous Oxide

Pediatric dentists are trained in the use of sedative agents in children. Nitrous oxide also known as “happy air” or “laughing gas” is one of the safest sedatives available in dentistry. It is indicated for children that are anxious or apprehensive during treatment and a safe technique to calm a child’s fear of the dental visit.
Nitrous oxide may not be indicated for all children, especially those with severe anxiety, nasal congestion, or extensive treatment needs. Your pediatric dentist will discuss with you which sedative treatment if any is appropriate for your child.

Oral Conscious Sedation

Drs Cortez, Sanchez and Planells received oral conscious sedation training during their residencies and have years of experience providing safe and comfortable oral conscious sedation in the office setting. They have oral conscious sedation permits administered by the Dental Board of California. Additionally, have obtained certification in Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS). All appropriate emergency medications and equipment are available in the office. In addition, the office has two recovery rooms equipped with oxygen and suction where patients can recover from the sedation until they are ready to go home.
We welcome your questions regarding oral conscious sedation. Our goal is to provide the most comfortable and safe sedation and dental procedures possible.

IV Anesthesia

Our pediatric dentist are certified to provide dental treatment with IV anesthesia in the office to children that are very young, extremely anxious/fearful, have special needs, or have very extensive dental treatment needs.

Our practice arranges the services of dental anesthesiologists who possess anesthesia certifications and are licensed by the state of California to provide these services in the dental office. They are also trained in Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS). All appropriate emergency equipment and medications are available in our office.
Patients are monitored during their IV anesthesia with pulse oximetry, blood pressure, and EKG monitors. A careful medical history is obtained prior to the anesthesia and dental treatment. Medications are usually given through an IV (intra-venous), but may also be given IM (intra-muscular), particularly in younger children. The medications used may include one or a combination of the following: versed (midazolam), fentanyl, propofol, and ketamine. The goal is to slowly administer the medications appropriate to each child’s weight and response to achieve a deeply sedated state during the procedure with a relatively short recovery period afterwards. After the IV anesthesia our patients and their parents are taken to one of our two comfortable recovery rooms equipped with oxygen, suction and pulse oximetry monitoring equipment until they are discharged to go home by the anesthesiologist.
We welcome your questions regarding IV anesthesia. Our goal is to provide the most comfortable and safe anesthetic and dental procedures possible.

Hospital Dentistry

A feature that makes our practice unique is the ability of our pediatric dentists to provide dental treatment with general anesthesia in the hospital.

Drs Cortez and Planells are on staff at Kaiser Hospital in Bellflower and Long Beach Memorial Medical Center/Miller Children’s Hospital. They provide dental treatment under general anesthesia to very young children, children with special needs, those who are medically compromised as well as those who are unable to receive dental treatment in the office setting.

Operative/Esthetic Services

Tooth Colored Fillings

Tooth colored resin fillings, also known as composites can be place in a front or back tooth and are “bonded” to the enamel of the tooth.
There are many advantages of composite fillings:

  1. They look great--the resin material is tooth colored.
  2. They release Fluoride to the surrounding enamel, reducing the chance of secondary decay around the restoration (filling).
  3. Minimal tooth structure is removed to make the filling retentive (stay in place).
  4. The material is bonded to both dentin and enamel of the tooth giving it added strength.
  5. If chipping or wearing occurs, the composite is easily repaired

In general, when composites can be placed, these new materials are highly recommended, especially for permanent molars. It is not to say that silver fillings aren't satisfactory. The esthetics and strength of the latest composite materials are great!

Sealants

A sealant is a clear or tooth colored resin coating which is applied to the chewing surfaces of teeth. More commonly used on permanent teeth, they can be applied to baby teeth as needed. They have been shown to prevent cavities on the chewing surfaces of teeth.

This procedure only takes a few minutes without any local anesthetic. In order to maintain the sealants it is best to have your child avoid hard and sticky candies such as jawbreakers or caramels and chewing on ice. The longevity of a sealant depends on diet, hygiene and oral habits.

Bleaching

We offer several types of tooth whitening systems, internal bleaching, external bleaching and home bleaching.

Internal Bleaching: This procedure, done in the office, is typically performed when there has been a root canal or nerve treatment completed. This can be used for bleaching primary or permanent front teeth.

External Bleaching: This in-office procedure removes unsightly stains from the outer surfaces of teeth with enamel defects such as white spots, yellow and brown discolorations.

Home Bleaching: An impression is taken to fabricate a customized tray. After necessary lab work is completed, the trays are fitted and a shade is taken. The average shade change is two shades brighter then the original shade. The initial number of hours necessary for using the tray is about two to three hours for the first few days. This time is increased to nighttime wear for two to three weeks. A reported side effect by some patients is temporary sensitivity to teeth. To maintain your desired shade, touch-ups may be needed.

Habit Appliances

Sucking is normal for babies and young children. Thumbsucking habits are usually established by three months of age. Some children have the need to "suckle" more than others. Frequent use of a pacifier or thumb can create a number of problems such as an anterior open bite (front teeth do not meet), Palatal changes and tongue protrusive posturing (tongue thrusting). Although these conditions can be corrected by orthodontics and/or surgical procedures in the future, early intervention is recommended. If your child has a thumbsucking habit, your pediatric dentist will work with you and your child to develop a reward system to help them quit. If this approach isn't successful, a thumbsucking or orthodontic appliance may be recommended. These appliances block the thumb or fingers from being inserted into the mouth. Periodical visits are performed to check progress.

Mouthguards

Does your child play football, baseball, basketball, soccer, hockey, skateboarding or gymnastics? How about any other activity where there is a risk of falls or head contact with other team players or equipment? No matter the sport your child is involved in you should consider having his/her dentist make your child a custom mouthguard.

If your child participates in the following activities, the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry, American Dental Association and the Academy for Sports Dentistry recommend that he/she wear a properly fitted mouthguard.

Each of these sports has the potential to seriously harm the head, face or mouth as a result of head-to-head contact, hazardous falls, tooth clenching, or blows to the mouth. A well-made, properly fitted mouth guard can be used for any of these sports.

Acrobatics Field Events Inline Skating Skateboarding Surfing
Bandi Field Hockey Lacrosse Skiing Volleyball
Baseball Football Martial Arts Skydiving Water Polo
Bicycling Gymnastics Racquetball Soccer Weightlifting
Boxing Handball Rugby Softball Wrestling
Equestrian Events Ice Hockey Shot putting Squash  

 

Mouth guards are the number one priority when it comes to sports equipment. There are three types of mouth guards:

  1. The ready-made, or stock mouthguard
  2. The mouth-formed “boil and bite” mouthguard and
  3. The custom-made mouthguard made by a dentist.

Although all three provide protection, they differ in the amount of protection and their comfort and cost. Customized mouth guards made by your pediatric dentist are more effective in preventing injuries and are more comfortable for your child. It does cost a bit more, but the protection it offers to their permanent teeth is priceless.