For Our Families

Patient Handouts

Everything we would hand you on paper, in one place. Scan it, bookmark it, and pull it up whenever you need it.

Each handout is part of the Coastal Compass™, our care system for every stage of growth — so the guidance you take home matches the stage your child is actually in.

Smiling San Diego mom carrying her laughing young daughter along the shoreline at a Del Mar beach at golden hour.

After Your Child's Visit

Pick the procedure your child had — what to expect today, and when to call.

Caring for a Space Maintainer

Your child has a small appliance holding a space open for a permanent tooth. Here is how to keep it working.

Caring for a Night Guard

How to clean it, where to keep it, and how to make it last.

After a Filling

What to expect after your child’s filling — numbness, sensitivity, eating, and when to call.

After a Stainless-Steel Crown

Care after your child receives a silver crown on a baby tooth.

After a Pulpotomy (Baby-Tooth Nerve Treatment)

What parents should know after treatment of the inside of a baby tooth.

After Dental Sealants

What your child may notice after protective sealants are placed.

Comfort & Sedation

After numbing, laughing gas, or sedation — until your child is fully back to normal.

When Your Child Is Numb

How to prevent lip and cheek injuries after local anesthesia — the most common after-visit problem, and the most preventable.

After Nitrous Oxide (Laughing Gas)

What to expect after nitrous oxide was used to help your child relax during treatment.

Orthodontics

New braces, adjustments, retainers, aligners — and what to do when something pokes or breaks.

After Braces Are Placed

The first few days with new braces — tenderness, eating, wax, and cleaning.

After an Orthodontic Adjustment

What to expect after braces are tightened or adjusted.

Braces Problem? What to Do

Poking wires, loose brackets, lost separators, and sores — what you can handle at home and when to call.

Retainer Care

Protecting your child’s result after braces come off — wear, cleaning, and what to do if it breaks.

Clear Aligner Care

Wear time, cleaning, and what to do when an aligner is lost or will not seat.

Everyday Prevention

The habits and products that keep cavities from starting in the first place.

Brushing and Flossing: Under 10

Young kids need an adult on the toothbrush. Here is what that actually looks like at each age.

Brushing and Flossing: 10 and Up

Older kids can take this over — with the right technique and a bit of oversight.

Keeping Teeth Clean with Braces

Braces add places for plaque to hide, and the marks it leaves can be permanent. The routine that prevents that — and when to call us early.

Using PreviDent 5000

A prescription-strength fluoride toothpaste. Simple to use — with one rule.

Using Disclosing Tablets

A chewable tablet that stains leftover plaque bright, so kids can see what they missed.

Eating for Healthy Teeth

For cavities, both what your child eats and how often they eat it matter. The timing is the part most families have not heard.

Brushing Calendar

A printable month of boxes to check. Bring the finished one in and pick out a prize.

Growing Smiles

What is normal at each age — and what is worth a call.

When a Baby Tooth Will Not Fall Out

The permanent tooth came in behind it and the baby tooth is still there. Usually this resolves on its own.

When Something Is Wrong

Injuries, sores, and swelling — what to do right now.

After a Dental Injury Visit

Aftercare once we have seen your child’s injured tooth — home care, what to monitor, and why follow-up matters even when everything feels fine.

A smiling San Diego dad sitting on a beach towel at golden hour, hugging his two laughing young daughters, with sandstone cliffs, a pier, and gentle waves behind them. — Healthy smiles are for enjoying — we handle the rest.

Not sure which one you need?

Call us. We would rather answer a quick question than have you guess.

Call (619) 562-5437 Text (855) 778-1160

These handouts are general information from Coastal Kids Dentistry & Orthodontics. They do not replace advice about your own child. If anything here does not match what we told you at your visit, go with what we told you.