One of the amazing things about kids is that they have absolutely no
fear. However, this fearlessness becomes distinctly less amazing when
they courageously leap off something, land on their face and knock
out a tooth! Not to worry, if this happens a knocked out tooth is a
situation that a prepared parent can easily deal with by taking the
following steps:
See a dentist as soon as possible
The most important
thing for you to do is to take your child to see a dentist. Dentists
can very often save teeth that have been knocked out, but their job
becomes more and more difficult the longer you leave it before seeing
them. Even if you can’t find the tooth, it’s still imperative
that your child sees a dentist, as the tooth can sometimes be knocked
back up into the gums. If your regular dentist isn’t open, or you
don’t have one, then contact the Emergency Dental Service who offer
a dentist
emergency 24 hours service. For the best outcome you
should see a dentist within one hour of the tooth being knocked out.
First Aid
If you are carrying
out first
aid you should make sure that you are wearing medical
gloves to avoid transmission of any bacteria into your child's mouth.
Then you need to follow these steps:
-
Control any bleeding, making sure that you position your child in such a way that any bleeding does not cause choking.
-
Try to find the tooth. If you find it, do not handle the tooth by the root. If it is dirty you can gently rinse it with water, but don’t use any antiseptic or soap as this may damage it.
-
If it is a permanent tooth then you can try to reinsert it, which is the best way to protect the root of the tooth and allow it to reattach. Do not reinsert the tooth if it is a primary, or baby, tooth.
-
If you are reinserting the tooth then gently get it into position in the socket, and press it into place with your thumb so that it is level with the crown of the adjacent tooth. Then get your child to bite down on a wad of gauze or similar to keep the tooth in place until you get to the dentist.
Preservation of the tooth
If you are unable to
re-insert the tooth then you need to preserve it until you get to the
dentist's office. Place the tooth in a small plastic bag with some
milk, and place the bag in ice. If you don’t have any milk then you
can wrap the tooth in a damp cloth, or you can keep it damp with your
child's saliva. You can do this either by placing it in the child's
mouth and asking them to hold it there (this is only recommended if
they are over 12 years old in case they swallow it) or by asking them
to spit into the cup with the tooth.
The reason
that milk is used for tooth transport is that cells
from the surface of the root won’t swell up and burst in milk as
they do in water. Milk also helps to maintain the correct acid to
alkali balance and allows the root cells to keep growing so that they
don’t die off. Saliva has the same effect but to a lesser extent.
But it’s just a baby tooth, it would have come out anyway!
Even if it is a baby
tooth it’s important that you visit the dentist. Baby teeth act as
space
maintainers for the adult teeth growing behind them.
If a baby tooth is lost unexpectedly this can cause the adult teeth
to come through in the wrong place, which in turn can cause crooked
teeth and problems eating.
CONVERSATION