Around five or six, a first visit is mostly for one thing: for the child to see the practice while not in pain. A child who only meets the dentist in an emergency learns to link the chair with pain.
Talk about the visit plainly, without promising "it won't hurt" and without making it a reward or a threat. The dentist shows the instruments, counts the teeth with the child and checks for decay on the milk teeth.
Decay on a milk tooth is treated. These teeth fall out one day, but they hold the space for the adult teeth, and an infection can reach the tooth growing underneath.
A parent stays for the whole visit. Bring the list of any medicines the child takes, if you have it.
Four notes from the practice on everyday care. They do not replace a consultation: for your own case, the dentist answers after examining you.