February LIVE Recap: PENZ Dental Care
February was pediatric dental health month and we had the privilege of having Matt Penz from PENZ Dental Care join us for our monthly Instagram Live.
Matt earned his Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS) degree at the University of Minnesota School of Dentistry and was awarded the "Quality Care in a Caring Matter" award. Five years ago, he started PENZ Dental Care in his hometown of Rochester, MN with the goal of creating a non-typical dental clinic where it didn’t feel like you were going to the dentist. Matt and his staff strive to make it a comforting and inviting atmosphere with a home-like environment. PENZ Dental Care serves all ages from young children to adults in their nineties.
Matt has a great team providing the best care through relationship building with their patients and community. Matt is the only general dentist and has a great team of several dental hygienists and dental assistants along with front desk support to meet patients' dental care needs. From the moment you walk into PENZ Dental Care or call on the phone, you will be greeted warmly and treated as if you were at home. They provide a “homey feeling” with their smiles, personality, and lobby that feels and looks like a living room.
The environment and staff at PENZ Dental Care set them apart from other dental practices. They bring a sense of familiarity to make it a less intimidating place which is especially helpful for children with sensory processing disorder. Usually, people don’t like going to the dentist, especially children. Matt explained how people dislike or have fear of the dentist because they had a bad experience in the past. No one likes to feel pain or have someone in close proximity working in your mouth. Matt and his team understand this and take intentional steps to make it less scary and intimidating within their environment and approach to care. A few staff members have children of their own aiding in delivering care to children.
We asked Matt several questions we had and a few of our viewers.
1. What steps do you take with the pediatric population and families? What techniques do you do as patients transition from the lobby to the dental chair?
The main approach Matt and his team use with the pediatric population is the “tell-show-do” approach. With the children, they tell the children what they are going to do, they show them by using props to model, and then they perform the care. The Dino (a stuffed dinosaur) is famous at PENZ Dental Care to show children the dental care they are going to perform in the child’s mouth. Staff use Dino’s mouth to model how the dental tools work and what to expect when they clean their teeth or perform a treatment. Staff encourages the children to count the teeth, feel and touch the tools, and practice using the tools in Dino’s mouth. This approach allows the children to see that it is not scary and alleviate anxious feelings prior to the team performing care in the child’s mouth.
2. When should a child have their first dental appointment?
Children should have their first appointment at age one or when they get their first tooth, whichever comes first. Matt explained their first appointment with children is quick, easy, and as “fun” as possible. Matt performs the knee-to-knee exam with parents to have a look at the child’s mouth. The knee-to-knee exam is where Matt and the parent will sit with their knees together facing one another. The child will sit on their parents' lap facing them and together Matt and the parent lean the child back onto Matt's lap slowly while the parent holds the child’s hands. This simulates the experience of the dental chair but in the comfort of the parents' lap promoting safety and security. The first visit consists of Matt looking at the child’s mouth making sure things are developing normally, there are no abnormalities in the mouth, and making sure the teeth are coming in the right position and order. A fluoride application will also be done. Research shows, fluoride applications done early decreases the incidence of cavities as the child gets older.
For older children, they strive to make their first visits as enjoyable as they can trying to prevent them from having a bad experience resulting in negative feelings associated with the dentist. They want to set up the expectations of the dentist early on and try to have them come in on a regular basis, every 6 months for care. This creates a sense of normalcy for the dentist eliminating problems as they move forward in their dental health.
3. For children who don’t or can’t spit out their toothpaste, what are some safety tips for fluoride?
The recommendations for fluoride have changed through the years. The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry currently recommends fluoride toothpaste for all ages. They say even a smear, tiny grain of rice, of fluoride toothpaste is beneficial even if they can’t spit. The benefits of fluoride outweigh the risk of excess fluoride. Matt recommends using a fluoride toothpaste up until age three then transitioning to a pea-size amount when they are three or able to spit by themselves.
4. What if it is an older child who can’t spit due to a disability or condition? What recommendations do you have for those kids when it comes to fluoride?
Matt says to use your judgment and still use a small amount of fluoride on the toothbrush. He mentions considering alternative ways to get the fluoride application without having the fluoride in the toothpaste. Older children can get fluoride to their teeth by using fluorinated water, such as drinking tap water or bottled water with it in it. Also, doing fluoride varnish, getting it at the dental visits, or using fluorinated chewable tablets if you are in an area with unsafe tap water.
5. Last tips to improve oral hygiene at home.
Try to make it as fun as you can! Try to get your child acclimated at the dentist early and have consistent dental appointments to prevent cavity build-up which can lead to negative dental experiences for your child. Also, make it fun at home. You can sing silly songs or call the toothpaste funny names. Matt and his daughters say, “Let’s get our princess sparkles on!” He also suggested the Elmo brushing song, making up your own brushing songs to popular songs, and finding videos on YouTube.
Check out this video of the hokey pokey song used for brushing teeth!
Thank you so much, Matt for taking the time to share about PENZ Dental Care and tips for parents to improve their child’s dental health! Watch the reply on our social media or click this link here.
If you would like to contact PENZ Dental Care or check their business out, here is their website: https://penzdentalcare.com/#welcome-1. Follow them on social media: Facebook and Instagram.