Emergencies are a common issue when working with highly energetic children whether it be from trauma or from toothaches. When you call the office, we will do everything we can to see your child as soon as possible. Our team is very skilled at walking a troubled parent through what needs to be done. We will do our best to schedule your child as soon as possible and provide the follow up appointments should they be needed..
Toothache
Give your child over-the-counter pain medication and use as directed until their visit with our office. Clean the area around the affected tooth thoroughly. This includes brushing well in the area and using floss. An ice pack placed on the affected site may also help relieve pain.
Broken tooth
If your child suffered an accident that caused a fracture of a tooth, first gauge how serious the accident was. If your child has any signs of dizziness, disorientation, bleeding from the nose or ears, or loss of consciousness, please visit an emergency room immediately. Follow up with our office once they have been fully assessed by a physician.
If everything else seems normal apart from dental damage, look at the tooth which was damaged. Please note whether it is a baby tooth or a permanent tooth. When your child comes in, we will assess the extent of the damage. In some cases, the tooth may need another specialized referral for an extraction or root canal therapy. In other cases, we will do our best to get your smile back as soon as possible!
My child knocked out a baby tooth: Knocking out a baby tooth doesn’t always require treatment, but it’s still important to call the office and we can address the situation. Depending on the situation, we may still have you come in so we can make sure the surrounding area doesn’t need attention. In the meantime, have your child apply gentle pressure to the site with a clean, damp cloth or towel as needed. You can also give the child over-the-counter pain medication as directed for discomfort. Do not put the baby tooth back in its socket because you may damage the developing permanent tooth.
My child knocked out a permanent tooth: In this situation, it is very important to contact the office immediately! The tooth will have the best chance the sooner we see your child. First, if the tooth is visibly dirty, gently rinse it off. Please hold it by the crown only, not by the root. Then try to put the tooth back in its socket facing the right way if possible. We know this is hard for some, so if you are unable to do so, then place the tooth in a glass of milk (not water) and bring it with you to the office. The tooth must stay moist, so if no milk is available, have the child spit into a cup, filling the cup with enough saliva to keep the tooth from drying out. Again, timing is critical, so please contact us immediately!
Tooth is pushed out of place
If your child's adult (permanent) tooth is moved inward, outward, and/or upward, try to reposition it back to its normal position with very light finger pressure. Call our office for an appointment immediately so that we can check the area with diagnostic x-rays and decide on a treatment plan. If needed, we will reposition the tooth if possible and we may need to place a splint to stabilize the traumatized teeth.
For a baby tooth that has been moved out of its normal position, we will evaluate the area and determine the treatment needs. We are always more concerned with the permanent teeth in these situations and need to prevent further damage to the developing adult tooth that is forming underneath the traumatized tooth. We never reposition, and unfortunately sometimes need to extract the tooth in these situations.
You may give your child over-the-counter pain medication to relieve pain and use ice compresses over swollen areas. Neosporin can be used to prevent infection for any external cuts or scratches. Keep your child on a soft diet for 2 weeks to prevent further damage. Call our office if you have any other questions or if symptoms get worse.
Broken Filling
Please instruct your child to try to avoid eating on the side of a broken filling.
Abscess/swellings
An abscess may appear as a "pimple" or "bubble" on the soft tissues of the mouth. This may occur as the result of deep dental cavities or trauma. If you see this kind of pimple or bubble on the inside of your child's mouth, call our office for an appointment. Facial swelling usually develops after an injury, cut, bite, sting, or a dental abscess. However, it may also occur without any known cause. There is usually a localized area of redness, swelling, sometimes heat, and pain. There can sometimes be throbbing pain and a fever. A dental x-ray will be required to correctly diagnose an infection. Treatment for an abscess or swelling will be diagnosed in the office and then the proper treatment recommendations will be given. This could possibly be a referral to another specialist in town.
Bitten or chewed lip following dental treatment
After any dental treatment where your child has been anesthetized (numbed), your child might want to scratch their face because there is a tingling sensation as the anesthetic is wearing off. Please watch that your child does not scratch or bite their cheeks, lip, or tongue. Your child feels their face and lips differently, and they may not be able to understand that the area is numbed. The numbness will typically last another 2-3 hours after we have finished working with your child. Please do not give your child any solid foods or snacks for a few hours as your child may bite or chew their cheeks, lip, or tongue and probably will not feel the injury. Give your child soft foods such as soup, Jell-O, ice cream, yogurt, juice, milk, milk shakes, or smoothies to maintain a soft diet. If you child has bitten their cheek, lip, or tongue, there may be swelling which may worsen over the next 2-3 days. A yellowish, white plaque (soft scab) will develop. This is part of the healing process. The lesion will heal over the next 10-14 days. If your child complains of pain, you may give them over the counter pain medication such as Tylenol or Advil or apply Orabase over the swollen areas.
