ToothPrints
The Dental ID for Safeguarding Children
One of the greatest fears of parents today is that their child will get lost or, worse yet, be abducted.
Indicative of this concern is the fact that to date, 34 states have implemented AMBER Alert systems that issue state-wide public alerts about missing children. As dental professionals offering Toothprints bite impressions, Downtown Dental Services plays a pivotal role in providing a proven means of identifying children or, better yet, DNA and saliva samples for tracking them. Toothprints is a simple, cost-effective way of documenting your young child's unique tooth characteristics, tooth position within the arch and maxillomandibular jaw relationship – all important identifiers.
Toothprints is an arch-shaped thermoplastic wafer that you soften in hot water, then place on the patient’s lower arch. The child bites into the wafer for 50 seconds in the same manner as a bite registration taken for prosthetics or orthodontics. After allowing a 2-3 minute cool-down period in the plastic bag provided, your patients’ parents have a Toothprints bite impression to take home for safekeeping. Making a Toothprints bite impression takes only a few minutes. It’s comfortable for your young child and will give their parents peace of mind. Hopefully, they’ll never have to use it.
Recommended Toothprints Update ScheduleYearly updates of Toothprints bite impressions is ideal. In lieu of that, the following schedule is recommended:
- Initial impression: Age 3 (or after all primary teeth have erupted)
- Update: Age 7 or 8 (or after the upper and lower incisors and the first permanent molars have erupted)
- Update: Age 12 or 13 (or after all permanent teeth, excluding 3rd molars, have erupted).
Contact our office to schedule your Toothprints for your children!
Lowry Advanced Dentistry
7201 East 8th Ave. Denver, Colorado 80220-4832
Phone 303-333-5148 :: Fax 303-388-4650 :: Email Us
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