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How To Deal With Dental Emergencies
Experiencing accidental tooth loss can be very traumatic. Most of
the time people think that a lost or broken tooth cannot be put back
or fixed. Here are a few pointers of things you can do to minimize
the damage after an accident and avoid permanent loss of tooth bone:
Broken tooth
If your tooth gets broken, first find all fragments of the damaged
tooth, if any have come off. Put these fragments in a cup of milk
and take them with you to your dentist. Your dentist will check for
fragments that may be left in the wound. If the top of the tooth (the
crown) has broken off, a small piece of gauze soaked in hydrogen peroxide
will help stop the bleeding. The gauze has to be placed on top of
the tooth.
Cracked tooth
If a tooth gets cracked, apply a layer of petroleum jelly (known as
Vaseline) to the tooth, so that cold or hot air will not cause any
pain when breathing. Steer clear of hot or cold drinks (lukewarm water
is fine) and go to a dentist as soon as possible. Depending on the
damage a dentist may be able to repair and fill the tooth.
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Knocked out tooth
If one of your teeth gets knocked out of your mouth, try to find the
tooth as quickly as possible. Hold the tooth by the crown (the top
visible half of the tooth) and rinse the root of the tooth off with
clean water if the tooth is dirty. To reduce accidental tooth loss
it is best to gently put the tooth back into its socket, and hold
it in place there. Should you not be able to do that keeping the tooth
in a cup of milk is the best option. After that it is imperative that
you should make your way to a dentist as quickly as possible, taking
the tooth with you of course.
Treatment for Dental Injuries
Broken teeth need your dentists’ attention too. Try to get to
one as quickly as possible and rinse your mouth with lukewarm water
to clean the wound or broken tooth. If available, applying a cold
compress to your cheek will help reduce swelling of the affected area.
As said before, if you manage to get to a dentist quickly after
the accident occurs, there is a lot that he or she might be able
to do for you. Accidental tooth loss does not always have to result
in the loss of a tooth for the rest of your life.
Your dentist may be able to put the tooth back into its original
place, if the tooth is not too badly damaged. Children’s milk
teeth are not re-implanted because the underlying adult ’tooth
could be damaged in the process of implanting it again. After re-implanting
the patient might have to wear a splint for a short period of time
to hold the tooth in place. If your tooth is damaged or chipped
a dentist is possibly able to rebuild the tooth using the original
fragment or filler. Tooth loss statistics show that most teeth can
be repaired again after breaking them. Your dentist will want you
to come back for regular checkups to ensure that the healing process
is going well.
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