Baby teeth still in at age 13 - Dental Health Message Board

HappyByrd · 06-27-2008, 10:54 AM

My grandson is 13 years old and still has 12 baby teeth. His dentist is planning to remove all of them at once so his adult teeth will drop down. The adult teeth are all there. He is is the 10 percentile on growth chart for his age - very short, very thin, no signs of adolescence. I am concerned that his eating habits have caused this. The only 2 things he ate until 2 years ago was 'Fishies' and fried bacon (always 1#). Now he eats cereal, bread, baked potatoes, fried chicken nuggets, and steak. Mom is not listening.

I appreciate any knowledge you can share with me.

HappyByrd · 07-01-2008, 02:36 PM

She is my daughter but I don't think that she is thinking this through. Can you imagine being 13 years old, already smaller that the other guys and having no teeth? I suggested that she talk to the dentist about removing the teeth one or two at a time. She did that and the dentist said he does this "all the time". (I have never, ever seen a teenager with no teeth!) Also, I have suggested to her before that he may have a growth hormone problem. Your answer has encouraged me to approach it again. Thanks for answering.

stumpyduralock · 07-02-2008, 02:58 PM

I would make doubly sure that the adult teeth are there behind before taking out the milk teeth.

I believe there is a syndrome where some people do not actually develop adult teeth. If this is the case I would imagine it is essential to hang on to the baby teeth for as long as possible.

Oyashirazu · 07-05-2008, 01:51 PM

I lost all my baby teeth very slowly. A few came out on their own, but I "helped" a lot: I checked constantly to see if I could wiggle them at all, and if I could, it was time for it to come out. I had 4 pulled by a dentist, about half a dozen came out on their own, and the rest I pulled myself. My upper canines were the last to go, when I was about 15. My mom told me that my great-grandmother had slow teeth, too, and that it was genetic. All that to say, is there a history of this kind of thing in your family? Such as the baby teeth growing in slowly, or others who keep their baby teeth a little long than normal? If he doesn't try to take them out at all, I would think the adult teeth might just wait around behind the baby teeth. I do think pulling them all at once is a bit radical. Hope I was helpful!