What to Do for a Child\’s Dental Emergency

In this post, we discuss the basics of what to do when your child has a dental emergency, including a cracked or broken tooth and other situations.

If you are having a dental emergency now, please call your dentist immediately.

For a dentist in Plano, TX call the office of David Wilhite DDS at (972) 964-3774

Kids Dental Accidents

Kids can be crazy sometimes. They run, they play, they roughhouse, they fall, and accidents happen. It\’s a part of childhood.

But what do you do when you are confronted with a crying child with an injury to their mouth or teeth?

We will try to give you some quick tips to help you out.

What to do first

First of all, remain calm.

As you know already with kids, you have to \”keep your cool\” so that your child won\’t become to upset or panic.

Console your child and reassure them that everything will be okay. It will be!

Assess the best you can if there is a more serious issue, such as a head injury, concussion or broken jaw.

If you have serious concerns or uncertain how serious it is, you can call 911 for help. We hope this is not the case but you want to make sure.

Broken Tooth

If your child has broken a permanent adult tooth, you want to save the tooth and keep it moist.

Placing the piece of the tooth into a small container of milk will actually work best. A saltwater solution is your next best option.

Be careful handling the tooth and try to handle it from the crown, not the root or exposed area.

A primary (baby) tooth does not need to be kept moist but recover it and handle carefully and bring it to the dentist.

Contact your dentist immediately.

Chipped Tooth

If your child has chipped a permanent adult tooth, you want to try and recover the chipped piece of the tooth and keep it moist.

Placing the piece of the tooth into a small container of milk to keep it moist. A saltwater solution is your next best option.

Be careful handling the tooth and try to handle it from the crown, not the root or exposed area.

Contact your child\’s dentist right away.

Cracked Tooth

Rinse the mouth with warm water to clean the area.

Get an icepack or cold compress and press it to the face to keep swelling down.

Contact your dentist as soon as possible.

Cuts or Bites to Lip, Tongue, or Cheek

Assess how serious the injury is. Could it potentially require stitches?

Gently clean the area with water and apply a cold compress or ice pack.

Head to the emergency room if the issue may require stitches.

Give your child a kid-appropriate dosage of acetaminophen or ibuprofen to ease pain or discomfort.

Toothache

Rinse out the mouth with a warm salt water rinse.

Apply an icepack or cold compress to the affected area.

Give your child a children\’s dosage of acetaminophen or ibuprofen for pain.

Contact your dentist if the issue persists and schedule an appointment.

We hope these tips help you and your child get through this difficult time!

David Wilhite is a Plano Dentist specializing in children’s pediatric dentistry with over 30 years experience in general and cosmetic dentistry. He can help you with children’s dental care, thumb sucking and pacifier use, dental fears in children and baby dental care.

Keep your child smiling now and in the future!

Call us today at (972) 964-3774