Sealants
Sealants are a thin plastic layer applied to the grooves (pits and fissures) of molar teeth to prevent cavities from forming. If the teeth have deep grooves they are very hard to clean properly and this is where we often see the first cavities forming in children. We recommend sealants to be done on most 6 year old molars as soon as they are fully erupted to prevent cavities from forming.
We usually don’t need to seal baby teeth since they don’t last as long, have a different shape and are less likely to have deep grooves. However, your dentist may recommend that your child have their baby molars sealed if they think the grooves are deep and there is a high chance of a cavity developing.
Applying sealant is a very easy procedure that does not require any local anesthetic (freezing) or drilling.