Fissure Seals

At around 6 years old, your child’s first adult molars will start to appear. Unfortunately, these are quite far back, and they have a lot of deep grooves (called Fissures) that can trap food and bacteria. As young children have trouble brushing effectively around their back teeth, and often brush much too quickly, these teeth can start to decay from a very early age. Having to have fillings very young is not ideal, and as they are adult teeth they will be in place for the rest of their life, so we need to keep them healthy!

A fissure seal is placed within these grooves to make them a little smoother, therefore easier to keep clean. Studies show teeth with fissure seals have a much lower rate of cavities, and as a bonus, it is a simple, pain-free and cheap procedure. We recommend your child should be seen earlier than 6 years old to ensure the teeth are coming through without any issues, and assessed to determine if fissure seals are required, helping to keep them healthy and pain-free for the rest of their lives.