An emergency pediatric dentist provides urgent care for issues with your child's mouth that cannot wait for a regular appointment. This includes injuries like a knocked-out tooth. Seek emergency dental care right away if your child has a knocked-out tooth since that can be the difference between being able to save the tooth or losing it forever. Knocked-out teeth can typically be reattached if you get the child to a dentist within a few hours of the injury occurring.
The first thing parents should do when a child's tooth is knocked out is to secure the parts of the tooth they can find. If the tooth is intact, rinse it off with cold water and try to place it back in its socket. If that does not work, store the tooth in saliva or warm milk and head to an emergency pediatric dentist.
Dentists can typically reattach knocked-out teeth that are intact. If that is no longer an option, the dentist might recommend teeth replacement options like dental implants depending on if the tooth is primary or permanent.
Reattaching a knocked-out tooth typically starts with the dentist flushing debris out of the tooth's socket with water. The dentist will then reinsert the tooth into the socket if it is intact and use a splint to keep it there. If the tooth is broken, the dentist might perform a root canal before reinserting it. Generally speaking, the sooner the patient gets to the clinic, the higher the odds of being able to reattach the tooth successfully.
The tooth should reattach itself to the jawbone in about four weeks if the structures around the socket were not damaged. It might take up to eight weeks if some of these bone structures were damaged when the tooth was knocked out. The patient will come in for a follow-up appointment to examine the tooth in a few months.
If the tooth cannot be reattached, the dentist will recommend alternative treatments like:
If the knocked-out tooth is a baby tooth, a space maintainer can be used to keep the space it once occupied open, so the permanent tooth behind it erupts properly.
If a permanent tooth is knocked out and cannot be reattached, an emergency pediatric dentist might recommend replacing it with implants. Implants are metal rods or screws that are inserted in the jaw. They serve as artificial teeth roots and as bases for restorations like crowns that replace the visible part of teeth.
Another option for replacing knocked-out teeth is a dental bridge. This is an appliance that consists of two or more crowns. The crowns on either side of the missing tooth are placed over the abutment teeth, which are the healthy teeth next to the empty space where the tooth was knocked out. These abutment teeth are used as support for the false tooth, which is called a pontic, in between them. Bridges can also be supported by implants if necessary.
A knocked-out tooth requires urgent dental care, so head to our Richmond clinic immediately to get your child the care they need.
Request an appointment here: https://www.grandparkwaypediatricdental.com or call Grand Parkway Pediatric Dental at (832) 579-0960 for an appointment in our Richmond office.
Check out what others are saying about our services on Yelp: Emergency Pediatric Dentist in Richmond, TX.
Visiting a pediatric dentistry office with your child ensures his or her future relationship with oral hygiene and dentists, in general. Whenever your child suffers from oral injuries, consider making an appointment with your pediatric dentist to uncover any underlying problems. For instance, injuries to the tongue and teeth could indicate a deeper jaw or…
Fluoridated water is part of pediatric dentistry. It is a convenient and easy way to strengthen and protect teeth at an early age. Many areas have fluoridated water, which is a definite advantage. If you want to know why a dentist will likely recommend fluoridated water, here are the details.Studies show that almost all sources…
Nutrition is an important part of pediatric dentistry. Having balanced amounts of vitamins and minerals can strengthen and protect the teeth. Proper nutrients also fuel dental function. If you want to know how important nutrition is for your child’s oral health, here are the details from a pediatric dentistry professional.Children are still developing. They need…
Dental crowns are important in pediatric dentistry. Each primary tooth is a living guide for the development of permanent teeth. But baby teeth can also suffer from decay. So restoring these teeth is important for the general health of your child. If you want to know if pediatric dentistry uses dental crowns, here are the…
A kid-friendly dentist educates children on ways to improve their oral hygiene at home. These lessons can help as children grow older and become more independent. A kid-friendly dentist chooses to focus on tailoring their office atmosphere and services to make it most comfortable for younger children.Every dentist has their own way of educating their…
A kid-friendly dentist offers services to children. A part of treating younger children includes dealing with their anxiety and helping them to remain calm and relaxed during their visit. There are certain techniques that dentists use to help children remain calm, which is discussed in this review.Kid-friendly dentists typically treat each child in a unique…