Pediatric specialty dentistry in north Fresno
A dental home for your child, from the first tooth to the teen years.
Dove Pediatric Dentistry is a specialty practice for children. The focus here is preventing dental problems before they start, and keeping the visit calm enough that your child is willing to come back.
7475 N 1st St, Suite 103, Fresno, CA 93720 Get directions
Is your child in pain right now?
Call and tell us what happened, whether it is a toothache, a chipped tooth, or a tooth that got knocked out. Call before you drive over so the office knows what to expect.
What we do
Care for children, from infancy through adolescence
Pediatric dentistry covers the whole span of childhood. Here is what that looks like in practice, in the practice's own terms.
Preventive care
The focus of the practice is preventing dental disease and infection before it starts. That is done through regular office visits, good home care and oral hygiene, managing what your child eats and drinks, and the use of fluoride.
- Check-ups and exams
- Cleanings
- X-rays
- Fluoride treatments
- Sealants
- Infant oral care
- Mouthguards
Fillings and restorative work
Small early cavities are filled with composite resin, and the undecayed part of the tooth is sealed at the same time. Larger cavities are restored with glass ionomer, which has fluoride built into the material, so fluoride keeps leaching into the tooth and makes it more resistant to decay.
When decay reaches the nerve, the tooth is treated with a pulpotomy. Parents hear that called a baby root canal, but it is not a root canal. It is a quick procedure that gets the child out of pain, and the tooth is then restored with a crown.
Tooth-colored crowns
Every filling restoration in this practice is white. Front teeth are restored with white strip crowns. Back teeth get either white flex crowns or stainless steel crowns.
The practice is straight with parents about the trade-off: white flex crowns look better, and most insurance plans will not cover them. Ask what your plan pays before you decide between the two.
Urgent problems
A toothache, a broken or chipped tooth, or a tooth knocked out in a fall or a game. Call and describe what happened and how long it has been going on, and bring any piece of the tooth you were able to find.
If your child is in pain, say that on the phone rather than waiting for the next open check-up slot.
Comfort
Ways to keep the visit calm
For younger and more anxious children, the practice uses several ways to make treatment easier to get through.
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Nitrous oxide
Laughing gas, for a child who is nervous but able to sit through the appointment.
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Pediatric oral conscious sedation
A weight-based oral sedative given in the morning, plus nitrous oxide once your child is in the treatment room.
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IV sedation
Handled with an anesthesiologist, who administers the medication and places the IV once your child is asleep. It costs more and carries more risk than conscious sedation, so it is a decision to talk through.
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General anesthesia
The practice has hospital privileges, so a child who needs to be treated under general anesthesia can be.
What conscious sedation actually means
This is the part parents most often get wrong, so it is worth saying plainly: with oral conscious sedation your child is not put to sleep. Your child is as relaxed and sleepy as possible, but conscious the whole time.
With either sedation method the parent does not come back to the treatment room. That is partly regulation, and mostly because children and parents both do better when the parent is not in the room during the procedure.
Insurance
Insurance and paying for it
The practice accepts most insurance plans. Have your plan details in front of you when you call, and ask what is covered before the appointment rather than after it.
One thing worth knowing up front: most plans will not cover white flex crowns on back teeth. If that is what your child needs, ask what your plan pays toward it and what the stainless steel alternative looks like.
Not sure whether you are covered?
Call (559) 431-7688 with your plan name and member ID and ask before you book.
First visit
Your child's first appointment
Both the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry and the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend that a child has a dental home by age one. That is early on purpose. It is the point where the parent and the child get set up for good oral hygiene, and prevention has to start young to work.
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01
Call
Tell us your child's age and anything that is worrying you, whether that is a spot on a tooth or a child who is frightened of dentists.
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02
An exam, at your child's pace
A look at how the teeth are coming in and where the risks are. For a younger or more anxious child, the comfort options above are on the table.
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03
Prevention first
Home care, diet, and fluoride are where most childhood cavities get avoided. That is the part of the plan you take home with you.
About
A specialty practice, not a general office that also sees kids
A pediatric dentist is a specialist who completed an additional two to three years of full-time training after dental school, specifically in treating very young children. The specialty covers every child from early infancy through adolescence.
The practice states its own goal this way: to maintain the integrity of the dental arch, so a child grows and keeps their teeth to their maximum potential. Everything else, the cleanings, the sealants, the fluoride, the fillings, is in service of that.
Committed to top quality dental care.
Questions
What parents ask most
Why take my child to a pediatric dentist instead of our family dentist?
It matters that a very young child is seen by a dentist who has had specialty training in treating very young children. A pediatric dentist has completed an additional two to three years of full-time training beyond dental school to do exactly that.
When should my child first see a dentist?
By age one, according to both the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry and the American Academy of Pediatrics. The point of going that early is to get the parent and the child prepared for good oral hygiene and care from the start.
My child has a cavity in a baby tooth. Does it really need to be treated?
Yes. Children do not start losing their front teeth until around age six, and the last baby teeth are not gone until around age twelve. A cavity at age three or four has years to get worse before that tooth falls out, and it will usually end up infected in the meantime.
Will my child be put to sleep?
Not with oral conscious sedation. That is the most common approach for a young child, and your child stays conscious, just very relaxed and sleepy. IV sedation is the other option, handled with an anesthesiologist, and there your child is fully asleep. It costs more and carries more risk, so it is a decision to make with the dentist rather than by default.
Do you take my insurance?
The practice accepts most insurance plans. Call with your plan name and member ID and ask what is covered before you book. Note that most plans will not pay for white flex crowns on back teeth.
Get in touch
Request a visit
Fresno, CA 93720
Call for current office hours and appointment availability.
Thank you. Your request has been sent to the office. For anything urgent, please call (559) 431-7688.