Children's dentistry
What does children's dentistry involve?
Children should see a dentist by their second birthday and every six months after that. Eligible families can have check-ups, cleans, fillings and extractions bulk billed under the Child Dental Benefits Schedule, which currently covers just over $1,100 across two calendar years. First visits are short, unhurried and mostly about looking.
At a glance
- First visit by
- Age two, then every six months
- Bulk billed
- For children eligible under the Child Dental Benefits Schedule
- CDBS cap
- Just over $1,100 across two calendar years, checked at the desk
- Appointment length
- 30 minutes, longer for a first visit
- Mouthguards
- Custom sport mouthguards fitted across two visits
The first visit is a rehearsal
By age two there are enough teeth to check and enough habit-forming left to influence. A first appointment is deliberately undemanding: your child sits on your lap or in the chair with you beside it, meets the light and the little mirror, has a count of their teeth, and leaves. If they will not open their mouth, that is a normal outcome and not a failed appointment — the point is that the room stops being unfamiliar before anything needs doing in it.
Booking mid-morning helps more than parents expect. Tired, hungry children at 4.30pm are a different proposition entirely.
What we watch for at each age
Under five: bottle and sippy-cup habits, the front teeth for early decay, and whether brushing is reaching the back molars. Adults should be doing the brushing until around age eight, because hand coordination lags enthusiasm badly.
Five to eight: adult front teeth arriving, the bite starting to reveal crowding, and the first adult molars, which have deep grooves that catch food and are the single most common site of childhood decay. A fissure sealant — a thin flowable coating painted into those grooves, no drilling and no needle — is one of the highest-value five minutes in dentistry.
Nine and up: the remaining adult teeth, wear from grinding, sport injuries, and the beginnings of the orthodontic conversation. We will tell you if a referral is worth making, and equally if waiting a year costs nothing.
The Child Dental Benefits Schedule
The CDBS gives eligible children a capped amount of Medicare-funded dental care across two calendar years — just over $1,100 at present — covering examinations, x-rays, cleans, fluoride, fissure sealants, fillings, root canals on baby teeth and extractions. Eligibility follows the family payment your household receives; we check it with Medicare while you are at the desk and tell you the remaining balance. We bulk bill it, so there is nothing to pay on the day and no claim for you to lodge.
Anxious children
Some children arrive already frightened, often after a painful appointment elsewhere. What works is slowing down: naming each instrument, showing it on a finger first, agreeing on a stop signal and actually stopping when it is used. We will split treatment across more, shorter visits rather than push through a long one, and we do not hold children still or pretend an injection is not an injection. Where dental work genuinely cannot be done in a normal chair, we say so and refer, rather than repeating an appointment that is not going to work.
Mouthguards
Any child playing football, hockey, basketball or netball should have a custom mouthguard, fitted over two visits and remade every year or two as the jaw grows. A boil-and-bite guard from a sports store is better than nothing and considerably worse than one moulded to the teeth — it loosens the moment the jaw relaxes, which is exactly when the impact arrives.
Children's dentistry — common questions
- When should my child first see a dentist?
By their second birthday, or earlier if you have noticed a mark on a tooth, a knock, or trouble eating. The first visit is about familiarity rather than treatment — a count of the teeth, a look for early decay, and a conversation with you about brushing and drinks. Starting while nothing hurts is the whole trick; a first appointment that happens because of toothache is a much harder introduction.
- What is the Child Dental Benefits Schedule and do we qualify?
The CDBS is a Medicare scheme that covers basic dental care for eligible children up to a capped amount over two calendar years. Eligibility depends on your child's age and on the family payment your household receives, such as Family Tax Benefit Part A. You do not need to work it out yourself — we check your entitlement and remaining balance with Medicare at the front desk, and we bulk bill, so eligible visits cost you nothing on the day.
- Do baby teeth with decay actually need filling?
Often, yes — it depends on the tooth and how many years it has left to serve. A back baby molar may not be replaced until age eleven or twelve, so leaving decay in it risks pain, infection and an extraction that lets the neighbouring teeth drift into the space. A front tooth due to come out within months is a different calculation. We will explain which situation you are in and what happens if you wait.
- My child is terrified of the dentist. What can you do?
Book a visit with nothing planned. No treatment, no expectation of opening wide — just sitting in the chair, meeting the instruments, and leaving on a good note. From there we agree a stop signal, show each instrument before it is used, and spread work across several short appointments. Nothing gets forced. If treatment truly cannot happen in a normal chair, we will tell you honestly and refer you to a paediatric specialist.