MY CHILD IS HAVING A DENTAL EMERGENCY – WHAT SHOULD I DO?

If your child is having a true dental emergency, one where trauma or bleeding is involved, please call the office immediately and, if the office is open, you will be asked to bring your child in immediately so that s/he can be evaluated and treated. If it is an after- hours emergency, the office answering system will page the doctor on call who will call you to discuss the nature of the emergency. If required, the doctor will meet you and your child at the office to treat your child, or the doctor may recommend that your child be seen at the nearest emergency room. Please note, we distinguish between a true emergency and what we term a perceived emergency. Toothaches are rarely a true emergency and often are a result of failure to follow through on previously recommended treatment.

Knocked out tooth – If your child has knocked a permanent tooth completely out of its socket (dentists call this “avulsion”), remain calm, then find the lost tooth. Hold the tooth by the crown. Do not wipe the tooth clean. Gently rinse the tooth off to remove any visible debris and, if you are comfortable doing so, place the tooth back into the socket. Have your child or someone else gently hold the tooth in place and see your dentist immediately. If you are not comfortable placing the tooth back into the socket, place the tooth in a glass of milk (skim or low fat is best) or Hanks balanced salt solution, if available. If these are not available, use a wet napkin or cup of water or if your child is old enough, have them hold the tooth in their mouth under their tongue. See your dentist immediately. If a tooth is placed back in its socket soon enough by your dentist (less than 1 hour) the tooth may be saved. The amount of time the tooth is out of the socket is critical.

Avulsed primary (baby) teeth are generally not reimplanted, the success rate for reimplantation is very poor and may cause future problems, such as ankylosis. If you are unsure whether your child has knocked out a primary or permanent teeth, err on the side of reimplanation and place the tooth back into the socket. See your dentist immediately.

Loosened teeth – if your child has had an accident and his/her tooth has not been knocked out but has only been loosened, depending on how loose the tooth is, your dentist may leave the tooth alone and allow it “tighten-up” on its own or may splint the loose tooth to firm uninjured teeth for support. If the tooth requires splinting, generally it will be splinted for 7-10 days, after which the splint will be removed. Traumatized teeth may turn dark and/or abscess after an accident, requiring further treatment up to an including root canal therapy or extraction. A traumatized tooth may turn dark soon after the trauma, or years later.

Cut/lacerated lip or tongue – apply pressure to the cut to stop or slow the bleeding. If the bleeding is severe or you cannot get the bleeding stopped, go to the nearest Emergency Room immediately. The cut or laceration may require stitches to stop the bleeding, to prevent infection and to help it properly heal.

Chipped/fractured tooth – if possible find the chipped piece of tooth and place it in water. Your dentist may be able to attach it back to the tooth. Call your dentist so that he or she may evaluate the chipped tooth. X-rays may be obtained to check the severity of the damage and to see if the root has been damaged and whether the tooth is able to be saved. Eat a soft diet for the next 3 days. Don’t chew on anything hard. Some teeth will need root canal therapy and more extensive cases may require extraction.

 

 

 

 

 

Sew a Lost Tooth Pillow

 

 

Print and Color "First Lost Tooth" Certificate

 

 

Print and Color
"Another Lost Tooth" Certificate