The purpose of children seeing their family dentist in Bloomfield NJ is that the dentist will remove any built-up plaque, which is important in preventing tooth decay.  They also check the progress of your children’s teeth, which is especially critical when they’re losing and growing new teeth.  Another important reason that children have to visit their family dentist in Bloomfield NJ is so that they can evaluate their oral muscles.  If they have any problems with these muscles, they may have to go to speech therapy.

Speech therapy is the assessment and treatment of communication problems and speech disorders.  Speech therapy consists of two factors.  The first one focuses on coordinating the mouth to produce sounds to form words and sentences.  During this phase, the child works on articulation, fluency, and voice volume regulation.  The second phase of this process is concerned with understanding and expressing language.

Aside from verbal communication, there may be other reasons why your child may need speech therapy.  This includes swallowing disorders, in which the child has trouble swallowing.  When this happens, a professional will investigate why this is happening.  Some of the reasons include: problems with prenatal development of the structure in their mouth and throat, dental problems (such as an overbite), cleft lip, and oral sensitivity, to name a few.

It’s crucial that your child’s oral muscles are functioning as they should.  If not, they may face communication problems, swallowing disorders, or even breathing problems.  At Sparkles Dentistry for Children, we will happily make a referral to a Speech and Language Pathologist if your child needs an evaluation of their oral muscles.  If they require an evaluation of their  developmental needs, we also have a speech and language pathologist available.