Savannah White is only 4-years-old, a little young to be given the designation “metal mouth” since braces are still several years in her future and all her adult teeth have yet to come in. But after a trip to the dentist office to fill what mom though was a few cavities, a full set of silver capped teeth is what she was left with.

4 Year Old Savannah White Receives Silver Caps on All Her Teeth in Miscommunication Between Mother and Dentist

Savannah White, age 4, was given all silver caps on her teeth when her mother thought she was only getting four fillings. (Image via AZ Family)

“I didn’t expect for her entire mouth to be covered in silver,” Savannah’s mom Alecia White said, according to AZ Family. “We went in to have a couple of cavities done and she came out with a mouth full of silver.”

White said the 4-year-old was self-conscious of her appearance afterward.

“On a daily basis she says, ‘Mommy, I don’t like my teeth. I don’t like my teeth,’” White said. “And it’s really kind of hard to hear every single day.”

4 Year Old Savannah White Receives Silver Caps on All Her Teeth in Miscommunication Between Mother and Dentist

(Image via AZ Family)

Watch this report regarding the incident:

AZ Family asked a separate pediatric dentist to review Savannah’s case. Dr. Richard Chaet said putting crowns on all her teeth appears to have been merited given the level of deterioration and potential for further problems.

One commenter on this story explained that Savannah likely had a pulpotomy, which is when infected dental nerve tissue is removed and replaced with dental cement and capped with a stainless steel crown to ultimately save the tooth. The commenter bringing up pulpotomy as the medical procedure the child probably had called it the “child-sized version of a root canal.”

Chaet noted the communication between the mother and the dentist should have been better to prevent the shock afterward.

Watch AZ Family’s report:


Chaet also noted that given the number of crowns that were needed, most dentists would have used white veneers instead of stainless steel.

4 Year Old Savannah White Receives Silver Caps on All Her Teeth in Miscommunication Between Mother and Dentist

Savannah after her silver caps were replaced with white veneers. (Image via AZ Family)

After a local dentist heard of Savannah’s story, he volunteered to put new caps on the child free of charge.

Some commenters on the story though have pointed out the issue of the girl’s teeth becoming so deteriorated that such measures were necessary in the first place.

One commenter on Medical Daily wrote, “It’s obvious this child teeth are terribly neglected and several either rotted out or were pulled out? Then [you] gripe because they cap the rest?”

Others on AZ Family’s main story wrote things like:

  • Maybe the mom should brush her kids teeth…. – David Vanicelli
  • Sounds to me like the parents were letting the child eat the wrong foods and were not cleaning her teeth. – Paula Griffiths
  • [A] child that young shouldn’t have teeth that bad without a serious level of neglect. – Bhig Bhad Wolf

Let us know what you think about the situation in our comments section below.

(H/T: Yahoo! News)