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Dental  hygiene  event  Friday for kids

There’s still time to  make appointments for  free screening and  cleanings for children in Fairfield and Middletown.

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By Andy Sedlak, Staff Writer 1:52 AM Thursday, February 3, 2011

MIDDLETOWN — Area dentists and Primary Health Solutions officials will volunteer their time and services Friday to give free screenings, cleanings and hygiene instruction to kids without insurance or whose families cannot afford dental care.

Appointments can still be made for the 9th annual Give Kids a Smile Day from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Middletown Community Health and Dental Center, 930 Ninth Ave. A clinic also will be held 8 a.m. until noon Feb. 25 from at Fairfield Central Elementary School.

Dr. Chris Carrico, a dentist with Lakota Dental in West Chester Twp., said families will have an opportunity to make sure children don’t have any lingering dental needs that may flare up and impact a child’s ability to learn in the classroom.

“This is a nice program to identify children in need or at-risk and try to get them taken care of,” he said. “There are just so many kids without dental insurance. They end up in the emergency room.”

Carrico volunteered at Fairfield’s clinic last year for Give Kids a Smile Day, but will be working Middletown’s this year. He said in 2010 the program drew about 150 kids combined from both locations.

Carrico noted parents should be checking how well their kids brush until at least 6 years of age, and that kids should be flossing daily.

“So many of the cavities we see are in between teeth to where simple flossing could help prevent it,” he said. “If parents and kids would take a little time each day, it would make life a little easier in the long run.”

Give Kids a Smile Day was started in 2003 by the American Dental Association.

Call the Middletown Dental Clinic at (513) 425-6811 to students’ determine eligibility and to schedule an appointment.

Contact this reporter at (513) 705-2871 or asedlak@coxohio.com.