Treatments

We believe in the value of evidence-based practice, which means that the treatment options we offer are based on sound clinical research 

The most important services we offer are preventative services including:

  • Anticipatory Guidance – telling you what to expect over the next 6 months of your child's dental/oral development

  • Nutritional Education – discussing personalized recommendations for nutrition that promotes healthy teeth with respect to each specific families dynamics and each child's personal needs

  • Proper oral hygiene habits/techniques – giving specific tips and tricks to brush and floss

  • Fluoride application

  • Sealant placement

Treatments:

  • exams

  • cleanings

  • radiographs

  • fillings

  • crowns

  • extractions

  • space maintainers

 Behavior Management Options:

  • Talking: Dr. Reaves talks a lot, but it has a purpose. Instructing, distracting, guiding the patient's perception of the appointment, getting to know the patient and family to understand how best to serve them.

  • Tell-show-do: We try to show and let patients touch everything we safely can so they understand what is going to happen. 

  • Nitrous oxide (laughing gas) inhalation 

  • IV sedation in office (*coming soon)

  • General anesthesia in hospital (*coming soon)

Core Values:

  • We will meet each patient and family where they are developmentally, mentally and physically to help them establish a personalized path of lifelong oral health.

  • We will help families transition oral hygiene and nutritional responsibilities from caregiver to patient at age appropriate times for best outcomes.

  • We believe that dental appointments are an important part of development for children in learning how to cope with new and different experiences, and that giving them the opportunity to get through an appointment with positive reinforcement builds self-esteem and resilience.  

  • We believe that children who are not ready yet to cope with treatment in a healthy way should be respected at their level of development and a more advanced sedation option will be advised in order to achieve the best long-term outcomes for a patient's dental and psychological health.

  • We discuss treatment with patients using age appropriate terminology. We do not use the words: "shot" or "needle" and we do not "pull" teeth out, we "wiggle." We also do not threaten or allow patients to be threatened with any of those things to get cooperation. We ask all families to work together with us on this. Yes, eventually patients figure out what is going on, but we allow that to happen at age appropriate times when they are ready to mentally cope with that information.  

  • We believe that patients actually do better with their caregiver in the room with them AND the caregiver has more confidence in their treatment choices and post-operative instructions when they are present.  A caregiver will always be allowed in the room with the patient unless they elect not to be present.  

  • We believe in the value of radiographs to detect cavities, infection, gum disease, missing/extra teeth, and pathology. It is the standard of care to take initial and follow-up radiographs at certain intervals during a child's development to check for pathology and developmental problems. Dr. Reaves has found tumors and other pathology on numerous young children that would have had significant consequences if not detected at early stages. For this reason, we will not be able to provide any services to families that refuse recommended radiographs that follow the standard of care guidelines based on each patient's caries risk and developmental stage.

  • We believe that oral health is an important component of overall health. Sometimes problems in the mouth can affect the rest of the body and sometimes problems in the body can affect the mouth. Dr. Reaves takes a patient's medical history into account when creating a personalized plan for each patient.