Posted by writeradmin
My son was playing basketball with some friends when he was elbowed in the mouth. It knocked one of his teeth straight out. The area is barely bleeding and the tooth looks intact. I do have a gauze in the area. Is there any way it can be saved or will I need to begin researching replacements?
Annie
Dear Annie,
I am very glad you wrote. Time is of the essence here. What I would like you to do is gently place the tooth in a glass of milk in order to keep it moist. Make certain that you only hold it from the crown of the tooth, which is the part you can see when you smile. Don’t touch the root.
Next, call your dentist. Let him or her know what happened and that you are on your way. This definitely qualifies as a dental emergency and they will want to be ready for you the moment you get there. Ideally, you should get there within 30 minutes of the injury.
They will gently place the tooth back in the socket and then make a splint for it that will attach on the lingual side of his teeth. Hopefully, if all goes well, the bone will reattach to the tooth.
Though basketball doesn’t have as many tooth injuries as hockey, it does have a high number of oral injuries. If your son doesn’t already have a sport’s mouthguard, now is the time to get him one.
If His Tooth Cannot Be Saved
The good news is that tooth replacements have come a long way these days. If his tooth cannot be saved, my suggestion is to get him a temporary (and inexpensive) tooth replacement, such as a dental flipper, until his jaw is fully developed. Once his jaw has finished growing, the ideal tooth replacement will be to get him a dental implant. This will be the closest thing to having a healthy, natural tooth in his mouth again.
This blog is brought to you by Youngsville Dentist Dr. John Theriot.