Milk teeth eruption: stages and symptoms explained by your Tijuana dentist

Tooth eruption may begin even earlier than 3 months of age and may continue until the third year of a child's life. Between 4-7 months baby’s first tooth will push the upper gum. The first teeth to appear are usually the front, known as the central incisors both in the maxillary and in the mandible. At 12 months the lateral incisors erupt, then followed by the first molars at 18 months and the canines at 24 months. Finally the second molars erupt around 30 months. The milk teeth have a periodicity of 6 months between them, but it is not always set in stone. Any delay or modification of the normal eruption sequence needs to be investigated by your Tijuana dentist.

Signs and symptoms of teething

Many children may experience only mild discomfort during the dental eruption while other children may experience major discomfort. Usually teething causes a pain that takes a few minutes followed by a period of calm. Teething can be accompanied by the following symptoms:

- Abundant salivation

- Anxiety, restless sleep

- Refusal to eat due to gum inflammation

- Placing the hands in mouth

- Mild rash around the mouth caused by skin irritation due to excessive salivation

- Rubbing the cheek or ear areas as a result of the pain caused by the eruption of molars.

Teething does not cause normally:

- High fever

- Diarrhea, runny nose and cough

- Rash.

When a person develops fever, a prolonged state of nervousness, diarrhea, nasal congestion, cough it may be a manifestation of a viral infection and not teething symptoms.

It is important to contact your Tijuana dentist if these symptoms appear without being supposedly triggered by tooth eruption.

The teething diagnosis is established after observing the characteristic signs and symptoms. Often the feeling of discomfort in the gums of the child improves when gentle pressure is exerted on them. For this reason, many doctors recommend mild rubbing of the gums with a clean finger or the use of teething toys.

If the pain causes eating disorders, sometimes a special bottle or a cup can reduce the inconvenience of teething and may facilitate feeding. Cold objects also help reduce inflammation.

For this purpose you can use toys that can cool in refrigerator. However, adults will be aware that children must avoid prolonged contact of the gums with very cold objects. Also the teething toys must be large enough, so the child is in no danger of swallowing them.

Using painkillers for tooth eruption is quite controversial. Ask your Tijuana dentist about the risks before the use of any medication on your child. Also consult your pediatrician. Drugs taken orally are acetaminofen or ibuprofen. However, for the operational administration of ibuprofen is not recommended for children under 6 months. Drugs will be used only when home care methods are not effective. Attention will be given to avoid large doses. Some painkillers can mask symptoms. Children should not be given products containing aspirin.