She doesn't even sleep with a bottle so I was mouther-effing annoyed when my pre-diagnosis of a cavity was confirmed. I still don't understand how she got one. I hate playing "Dr. Mom", but I was pretty dang sure that Niki needed to be seen by a dentist -- stat. Thankfully it's not quite a cavity yet, but the dentist at UCSF (Dr. T) confirmed that her enamel is very weak. Especially in one specific area.
And I've always been clean freak when it comes to the cubs' fangs, too. Damn!
I worked in a dental office for three years and my brother is an RDA so dental health is pretty damn big in our family. The cubs drink tons of milk, brush their fangs twice a day, use fluoride toothpaste and everything, but the boy cubs STILL get cavities. It looks like that Niki has also been cursed with the same crappy tooth enamel. Our family dentist and Dr. T both informed me that weak tooth enamel can be hereditary.
John was a trendsetter in '87 because he had a silver grill before all those rap stars. I'm convinced the cubs get the weak enamel from him. Oh...and every other bad gene, of course! ;-)
Apparently, there is a very slim chance that the antibiotics could be causing her weakened pearly whites. Dr. T theorized that her bleeding disorder could *possibly* be another cause behind Niki's "mouther-effing problems". However, she doesn't know for sure because there is so little documentation Factor VII Deficiency or taking NovoSeven as prophy. Moreover, there aren't any other infants (at least here in the US) that we know with Niki's severity. I swear, this "rare disease" stuff is a pain in the ass some times.
Mouther-effer!
So, as always we can only speculate. Now we have to be even more diligent about Niki's dental health -- Dr. T's orders! We must brush Niki's teeth three times a day AND wipe her teeth with gauze after every meal. Let's see if my MIL can adhere to these rigid instructions. She tries her best, but I know it's hard to give Niki special attention with all the other daycare kids to care for. John wanted to keep Niki on formula until she was 2 years old, but Dr. T said it would probably be a good idea for us to alternate bottles between formula and cow's milk. Formula has tons of fluoride in it so it could do more harm than good to Niki's fangs.
Too much fluoride intake isn't great for the teeth either. Go figure.
Ironically, all Dr. T did at the appointment was brush Niki's teeth and swab her mouth with fluoride. Dr. T says that the fluoride will penetrate Niki's tooth enamel and make them stronger. I don't get it, but whatever. Science doesn't make sense sometimes.
Thank God, there was no need for general anesthesia or fillings.
The pre-cavity wasn't that bad, but we do need to take Niki in every 6 months so they can monitor her progress. Niki also has a lovely eruption cyst developing at her upper right molar area. So, it looks like she has another tooth coming in, folks! I'm not too concerned with it (lest it pops, of course) because it looks very similar to what happened to upper gums a few months ago. I hardly ever get shocked anymore. Is that good or bad?
You decide. ;-)
All in all, the Niki's first dental visit wasn't such a mouther-effer after all. I was even able to squeeze in a few pictures.
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