Nonprofit dental clinic now offers pediatric sedation

According to a Utah Department of Health (UDOH) survey conducted in the fall of 2010, more than 2,600 first-, second- and third-graders needed urgent dental care due to extensive tooth decay, infection and/or pain — in large part due to a lack of insurance and income to pay for the costly services.

In response to that need, Salt Lake Donated Dental Services — a nonprofit clinic that has provided dental care to the under-served of all ages since 1990 — launched its pediatric sedation program in March. It currently operates one day per month.

While using anesthesia significantly adds to the cost of the dental work, the practice makes sense for young children who are in chronic pain and can’t sit still for extended periods of time. Even X-rays are taken during sedation.

So far, 18 children have received $32,930 worth of sedation and dental treatment, including 44 fillings, 82 crowns, 31 extractions, 18 cleanings, 13 sealants and 12 fluoride varnishes.

Many of the children have been referred to the sedation program by SLCAP Head Start, which serves children up to 5 years old who live in families with incomes at or below the federal poverty level — about $23,000 a year for a family of four. The early childhood development program can accept children with family incomes up to 125 percent of that threshold. Salt Lake Tribune