Mairesse A M, Coutand A, Bouvet J M
Rev Stomatol Chir Maxillofac. 1977;78(4):259-68.
What should be done about the child who sucks his thumb? If the child has no dento-maxillary deformity, he should be left to suck his thumb. In the presence of deformities, it would seem wise not to interfere before the age of 6 or 7 years. Firstly, the majority of thumb suckers abandon this behavior spontaneously between 3 and 7 years, and secondly it is only at the age of 6 years that the milk teeth begin to be replaced by the adult dentition. An early intervention has the risk of being ineffective or even of reinforcing the habit and leading to other problems. After 7 years, the child with deformities should be examined and in the absence of an psychological contraindication, "invigoration psychotherapy" should be undertaken in order to put a stop to the thumb sucking habit. Finally, when the 8 year old continues to suck his thumb despite psychotherapy by the psychologist or the stomatologist, the advice of a child psychiatrist must be sought in order to determine whether the symptom which the habit represents should be disturbed or not.
对于吮拇指的孩子该怎么办？如果孩子没有牙颌面畸形，就应该任由他吮拇指。如果存在畸形，在6、7岁之前似乎明智的做法是不进行干预。首先，大多数吮拇指的孩子会在3到7岁之间自发戒掉这种行为，其次，乳牙要到6岁才开始被恒牙替换。早期干预有无效的风险，甚至可能强化这种习惯并导致其他问题。7岁之后，有畸形的孩子应该接受检查，在没有心理禁忌的情况下，应进行“强化心理治疗”以戒除吮拇指的习惯。最后，如果8岁的孩子尽管经过心理学家或口腔医生的心理治疗仍继续吮拇指，就必须寻求儿童精神科医生的建议，以确定是否应该改掉这种习惯所代表的症状。
