Children's dentist in Karlovy Vary: care without fear, from the first visit

Are you looking for a dentist your child will not be afraid of? At Clinic for Smile, young patients are cared for by MDDr. Magdalena Šolcová, a children's dentist specialising in paediatric dentistry. On this page you will find how our children's care works, when to bring your child for the first time, what we are able to treat, and what we do about fear of the dental chair.

Why choose a dentist who focuses on children

A child's teeth are not simply "small adult teeth". Milk teeth have thinner enamel, decay advances through them faster, and they are treated differently from permanent teeth. Just as important is the psychology — the way a child experiences those first few visits shapes their relationship with dentistry for the rest of their life.

That is why children here are seen by a dentist who knows how to talk to them at their own pace. The purpose of the first visit is not to drill. The purpose is for the child to leave feeling that the dentist is somewhere safe — and to come back next time smiling.

When to start taking your child to the dentist

We recommend the first visit shortly after the first teeth come through. If you would like advice even earlier — how to care for your baby's gums and prepare for those first teeth — you are very welcome to come. It is not because something needs treating; quite the opposite. The sooner a child gets used to the surroundings calmly, the less there is to fear later on.

As a rough guide:

  • From the first teeth - getting to know us, checking how the teeth are coming through, brushing advice
  • 2–3 years - regular check-ups, learning to cooperate, prevention of decay
  • Pre-school and school age - monitoring the change from milk to permanent teeth, children's dental hygiene
  • Adolescence - prevention and, where needed, referral for orthodontic treatment

We do not set a firm upper age limit. Once patients reach adulthood, we leave the decision to them — if they feel comfortable here and want to stay, they stay.

What the first visit looks like

We go at whatever pace suits the child. We offer a separate introductory (familiarisation) visit — no treatment, just getting to know each other. It takes roughly 30–40 minutes and costs CZK 2,000 (approx. €80). If a small treatment does turn out to be possible during the visit, it is charged according to our price list.

What usually happens:

  1. Meeting the surgery - the child gets to look around the room, the chair and the instruments. We show things; we do not surprise.
  2. Listening to the parents - what your child needs, what worries you, what to watch out for.
  3. A gentle examination - the child sits alone or with a parent. If they are curious, we show them the equipment and materials we work with.
  4. Brushing and diet advice - practising the right brushing technique, recommendations on habits.
  5. A care plan - if treatment is needed, we set out how we would proceed and tell you the price in advance.

The order is not fixed — we follow how the child is feeling. If they want to try the treatment, or part of it, we try. If not, we do not force anything. The aim is to take the fear away and build trust.

What we offer children

MDDr. Šolcová provides the full range of children's care — from prevention through to the more demanding treatments that other practices often refer elsewhere:

  • Preventive check-ups and topical fluoridation (fluoride varnish that protects the enamel)
  • Fissure sealants - sealing the grooves in the back teeth against decay
  • Treatment of decay in milk and permanent teeth alike
  • Pulpotomy - treatment of the pulp, the nerve inside the tooth, in badly decayed milk teeth
  • Crowns for children's teeth - veneered (Frasaco) crowns for front teeth and stainless steel crowns (SSC) for teeth heavily damaged by decay
  • Space maintainers - holding the gap open after a milk tooth is lost too early
  • Riva Star (silver diamine fluoride) - stopping decay gently, without drilling
  • Treatment after a dental injury - a chipped or knocked-out tooth is dealt with as quickly as possible
  • Extraction of milk teeth where it is genuinely necessary
  • Advice and timely referral for braces

Children with special needs

We also care for patients with a physical or intellectual disability — from children in wheelchairs to children with autism, intellectual disability and other diagnoses. With these children we work with particular care and patience.

At the consultation we first gather information about your child's diagnosis and needs, and only then do we put a plan together and discuss the most suitable approach with you. Sometimes the goal is reached quickly and easily; sometimes the road is longer, and asks for more patience on both sides. Our aim is always to save as many teeth as possible, and to do it as gently as possible.

Does it hurt? Anaesthesia and comfort during treatment

We handle pain in children carefully, and we have more options available than a standard practice. We always choose the gentlest one for the child's age, the extent of the treatment and their ability to cooperate:

  • Topical anaesthetic - a numbing gel we use to prepare the area before any injection
  • Local anaesthetic - standard numbing of the area being treated
    Conscious sedation (midazolam) — a medicine with a calming and "forgetting" effect, used for smaller fillings and extractions. Taken on an empty stomach
  • General anaesthesia - for longer or more demanding procedures (up to 3 hours) where a child cannot be treated in the usual way. We carry it out together with an experienced anaesthetist and their own anaesthetic nurse. Under general anaesthesia we can treat milk and permanent teeth in a single session — from fillings through pulpotomies and crowns to space maintainers

Sedation and general anaesthesia require preparation (among other things, no food for roughly 3 hours beforehand). We will go through all of it with you in advance.

Emergency treatment

Is your child in pain, or has there been an injury? We do our best to treat your child the same day. We keep time free for emergencies every day.

If you call during the day about an injury or swelling, we will at the very least examine your child and judge whether we can treat it straight away or whether it is better to wait. If sedation or general anaesthesia is needed, preparation is necessary (an empty stomach), so the appointment may move — but we always look for the fastest safe route.

How often to come for check-ups

We recommend a preventive check-up twice a year. Children with a high risk of decay we see more often — roughly every three months — so that we can prevent teeth being lost too early. Alongside regular check-ups we also recommend dental hygiene for children twice a year.

For parents: how to prepare your child

The way you talk about the visit at home has a great deal of influence on how your child experiences it. A few tips from our dentist:

Avoid words that frighten a child unnecessarily — drill, pull out, cut, hurt, needle, injection, jab. Children attach a bad feeling to them on their own. The same goes for playful nicknames for the drill: children work out what they really mean, and the word loses its reassurance.

Do not promise that "nothing will be done". If your child then needs to be examined or treated, that promise breaks the trust between your child and the dentist — and that is the last thing we want.

What does help:

  • Talk to your child calmly and positively about the place they are going to
  • Practise opening wide at home, perhaps with a plastic mirror
  • Bring a favourite toy or soft animal your child feels safe with

You are welcome to stay with your child during treatment - or to wait outside. We leave that to your child and to you; one day a child wants a parent close by, another day they are happy to go in alone. We never forbid it.

Your child's dentist

MDDr. Magdalena Šolcová (Doctor of Dental Medicine) works in paediatric and restorative dentistry. She studied dentistry at the Faculty of Medicine in Pilsen, Charles University, and in practice she focuses above all on young patients — including children with physical and intellectual disabilities, whom she reaches through patience and the fundamentals of child psychology.

She is continuing her education with studies in art therapy and music therapy at the University of West Bohemia in Pilsen — a field that helps her work better with children and their emotions in the surgery. She speaks Czech, English and German.

Frequently asked questions

From what age will you see a child?

Ideally from the moment the first teeth come through. If you would like advice even earlier — how to care for your baby's gums and prepare for the first teeth — do come. It is never too soon.

What if my child is frightened and cannot be treated?

We work with familiarisation visits and we never force a child. For most children, time and patience are enough. For more difficult situations we also have sedation or general anaesthesia available — but we always begin with the gentlest route.

Will it hurt?

We keep pain to a minimum — from numbing gel through local anaesthetic to sedation or general anaesthesia for demanding procedures. We do not talk about pain in front of the child, and we recommend that parents do the same.

Will you treat a child with special needs?

Yes. We care for children with physical and intellectual disabilities. At the consultation we discuss your child's diagnosis and needs and put together a plan tailored to them.

What if my child's tooth starts hurting at night or at the weekend?

We do our best to treat emergencies the same day — we keep time free for urgent patients every day. Please call reception as early as you can.

Do we have to come even when nothing hurts?

Yes, ideally twice a year. In children, prevention and catching decay early matter far more — and are far more pleasant — than dealing with a tooth that already hurts.

Are you taking on new child patients?

Yes, we are accepting all new child patients. Simply book an appointment.

How do we book?

Please book the first visit in advance through our reception — using the form on the website, by email or by phone. Tell us that it is for a child patient and the child's age, and reception will book you into the right slot.

Is it covered by insurance?

We are a private clinic with no contracts with health insurance companies, so you pay for treatment directly. Most Czech insurers do, however, offer children a contribution towards dental hygiene — you simply claim it using the receipt we give you.

Book the first visit

Would you like your child to have a dentist they are not afraid of? The first visit needs to be booked in advance — contact our reception, who will make you an appointment with our children's dentist:

  • Fill in the consultation form — reception will get back to you
  • Send an email to infoatclinicforsmile [emailtecka] cz (info[at]clinicforsmile[dot]cz)
  • Call us on +420 720 932 351

When booking, please tell us that it is for a child patient, the child's age, and whether this is a first visit — reception will then find the right appointment for you.

Care for our young patients is provided by MDDr. Magdalena Šolcová, children's dentist (paediatric and restorative dentistry). This content is for information only and does not replace an examination by a dentist.

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