Causes And Management Of Tooth Discolouration

My friend is very worried of her son's yellowish teeth though he is only 2! No matter how regularly she cleans her son's milk teeth, the stains still persist. I then came across this article about the causes and management of tooth discolouration. I share out the tips here, and hope that it helps to solve her query.

Tooth discolouration is due to external and internal factors.

External Factors

1. Smoking or drinking beverages containing caffeine.

2. Inadequate dental hygiene. The accumulate plaque can adsorb food colouring, resulting in stains. Go to the dentist for scaling and chemical cleaning.

Internal Factors

1. Tetracycline - antibiotic taken during pregnancy or early childhood. The stain can be masked by laminate veneer onto the tooth surface. Bleaching by chemical agents is an alternative to veneer.

2. Dental caries or tooth decay due to poor hygiene and taking too much sweets and fizzy drinks. Dentist will drill around the decay and put in a filling.

3. Pulp necrosis (pulp death) occurs due to trauma to the tooth or untreated caries, and causes the tooth to appear in greyish black. Root canal therapy involves partial or total removal of injured pulp tissue. The pulp chamber and root canals are then cleaned and sealed.

4. Decayed milk tooth may lead to infection in the vicinity of the developing of permanent tooth. This infection will disrupt the formation of the enamel of the permanent tooth, resulting in yellowish-brown patches. May apply topical fluoride or protective cap to the tooth surface to arrest the caries and to remineralise it.

5. Long term and excessive ingestion of fluoride in drinking water and toothpaste is one of the cause.

So, for those who concern, better take the above into consideration. As a mother, we should observe very well over our children's teeth development.