The dental professional will assess all the present dentition for early carious demineralization and may provide recommendations to the parents or caregivers the best way to prevent ECC and what actions to take. Studies suggest that children who have attended visits within the first few years of life (an early preventive dental visit) potentially experience less dental related issues and incur lower dental related costs throughout their lives. Treatment
The current standard of care for Severe Early Childhood Caries includes restoration and extraction of carious teeth and, where possible, includes early intervention which includes application of topical fluoride, oral hygiene instructions and education. The initial visit is important as it allows dental professionals to flag unfavourable behaviour or eating habits. This will also allow dental clinician, working in a collaborative team, to perform diagnostic testing to determine the rate and progression of the disease. This is done by performing risk assessment based on the childs age, as well as the social, behavioural, and medical history of the child. Children at low risk may not need any restorative therapy, and frequent visits should be made to detect possible early lesions. Children at moderate risk may require restoration of progressing and cavitated lesions, while white spot and enamel proximal lesions should be treated by preventive techniques and monitored for progression. Children at high risk, however, may require earlier restorative intervention of enamel proximal lesions, as well as intervention of progressing and cavitated lesions to minimize continual caries development.
It is common for infants and young children to frequently consume fermentable carbohydrates, in the form of liquids. The consumption of liquids containing fermentable carbohydrate, include drinks such as: juice, breast milk, formula, soda. These consumables all have the potential to increase the risk of dental caries due to prolonged contact between sugars in the liquid and cariogenic bacteria on the tooth surface. Recent research has shown that breastfeeding does not increase caries risk up to 12 months of age. Poor feeding practices without appropriate preventive measures can lead to a distinctive pattern of caries in susceptible infants and toddlers commonly known as baby bottle tooth decay or ECC. Frequent and long duration bottle feeding, especially at night, is associated with ECC. This finding can be attributed to the fact that there is less salivary flow at night and hence less capacity for buffering and remineralisation. Each time a child drinks these liquids, acids attack for 20 minutes or longer. A parents education and health awareness has a major influence on the caries experience of their child - feeding practices, dietary habits and food choices. Socioeconomic factors
Dental caries still today, remains the most prevalent disease worldwide. This means the disease is highly preventable, yet it is still burdening millions of children and into adulthood with pain and potentially lower quality of life. There are several studies by Locker and Mota-Veloso reporting that there is a two-way relationship that exists between dental caries and levels of education, household income that effect quality of life and social positioning.