A Dislodged Tooth: A Pediatric Dental Emergency

Dentist Blog

A dental emergency can happen regardless of a patient's age. However, pediatric dental patients are sometimes more prone to accidents that result in dental emergencies. As a parent, it's important to recognize a situation that requires prompt dental attention so you can get your child the help he or she needs in a timely manner. A delay in treatment may result in a lost tooth or an invasive dental procedure that could have been avoided. Here is one situation that pediatric dentists typically consider to be a dental emergency.

Your child has a tooth dislodged by a blow to the mouth or other trauma.

Children can easily incur a dislodged tooth from a minor accident while playing. If your child plays sports, a blow to the mouth from another player or a ball is likely to occur at some time. If the blow is hard enough, it can loosen a tooth or knock it completely from its socket. Children also tend to have accidents while actively playing on devices, such as bicycles or skateboards.

Once a tooth is dislodged, it needs to be positioned back in place as soon as possible. The longer the tooth remains disconnected from the mouth, the more likely the living tissue of the tooth is to die. If a tooth cannot reconnect in the mouth, it may be lost. Thus, once a child's dentist is notified of a dislodged tooth, he or she will usually direct a parent to bring their youngster into the office as soon as possible after the incident occurs. Still, a bit of time will transpire on your trip to the dental office. Here are some of the precautions that you should take to preserve the tooth until your child receives treatment:

  • Rinse foreign debris from a dislodged tooth, but do not scrub it or use any cleaning agents as you rinse.
  • Place the tooth back into its socket if possible.
  • If the tooth cannot be placed in its original position, situate it in the pocket of your child's inner cheek until he or she arrives at the dentist's office.
  • In some instances, the tissues of the mouth are too damaged to place the tooth in the oral cavity. If this is the case, place the tooth in a cup of milk to preserve it.

To learn more about pediatric dental emergencies, schedule a consultation with a dentist in your local area.

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15 June 2017

Fluoride: Why I Drink Tap Water

When the bottled water craze began, I jumped on the bandwagon with everyone else who was drinking water from bottles instead of from the tap. I wasn't sure why bottled water was healthier, but I liked the taste. When I went for my next dental check-up, I had my first cavity in a while, so I had it filled and didn't think much of it. Well, I had two more during my next check-up after that, and I began trying to think of why my teeth were suddenly going bad. The only change in my habits was the switch to bottled water, so I made the switch back to tap water and my teeth began to improve. I created this blog to encourage others who have begun getting cavities suddenly to look into their changes in habits. They may find they made a change similar to mine.