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Mission

The mission of Capernaum is to provide, with integrity, professional, caring, and cost-effective pediatric services, so as to help the child reach his/her full potential. Capernaum provides physical, occupational, and speech therapy services to children with a wide range of developmental needs.

For more information on Capernaum’s services, visit us at www.capernaumpeds.com

Mar 5, 2018



Selecting a Toothbrush and Tooth Paste Your Child may Tolerate: 
  • You may need to experiment with toothbrushes of different sizes, bristle firmness, handles, and colors before you find the one the suits your child. 
  • A battery or electric toothbrush that has a slight vibration may be preferred by your child. 
  • Try a toothbrush that sings! 
  • Try a toothbrush that lights up. My son loves the stars wars themed toothbrush that lights up for the duration of tooth brushing. 
  • Consider the taste of the toothpaste. Try altering the brand, use less, or start without using any toothpaste. 
  • If a toothbrush is not at all accepted, you may need to start by helping him/ her wipe their teeth clean using a damp washcloth. 
Recommended Tooth Brushes:

- Oral Swabs

- NUK Toothbrush

- Infa-Dent Finger Toothbrush

- Electric Toothbrush

- Suction Toothbrush

- Soft Child’s Bristle Toothbrush

Preparation Before Tooth Brushing: 
  • Provide deep touch beginning with the child’s arms and legs, and progressing towards the face and mouth. 
  • Tap the child’s gums firmly from center to each side on the upper and lower gums.
  • Attempt to desensitize your child’s face, lips, and inner mouth for the tooth brushing. While your child is looking into the mirror or at your face, use a soft washcloth to firmly rub his/her cheekbones, borders of the nose, cheeks, chin, and lips. Do this using firm pressure and in a predictable manner. Do this in the same order each day. Finally, place a portion of a damp, slightly warm washcloth into his/her mouth. Encourage him/her to bite down on it while you gently tug on it as tolerated. 
Tooth Brushing Techniques: To help your child understand the duration of the tooth brushing try one of the following: 
  • Sing a familiar short song throughout the process. When the song is over, the tooth brushing ends. 
  • Use a sand timer to indicate when tooth brushing will end. 
  • Try a Timer App! There is are lots of free apps you can download for a smart phone or tablet. There is a free Oral-B Disney app that has a timer with characters. 
  • Count to a specified number each time they brush. Once that number is reached, tooth brushing is over. 
  • Experiment with different water temperatures when brushing his/her teeth. Warm, rather than cold water may be better tolerated. 
  • Experiment with different ways to complete the actual brushing. 
  • Allow your child to hold the toothbrush while you gently guide his/her hand as tolerated. 
  • Use a mirror - He/ she may allow you to help brush if you stand behind your child while he is looking into the mirror. 
  • Make tooth brushing a game - Attack of the cavities! Make brushing away the "germ bugs" a fun game. 
  • Make tooth brushing part of your child's daily routine. 
  • Try brushing teeth while in the bathtub. 
  • Your child may not tolerate any help and insist on brushing independently (yet briefly). While this may result in his/her teeth not being thoroughly clean, your child’s skill should gradually improve.