With the Little League baseball season in full-swing, I thought it would be prudent to provide you with some tips for handling knocked out teeth - God forbid this should happen to your child. But, really these tips apply to anyone with freshly knocked-out teeth.
The Essentials
If you take away anything from this post, it’s this: the longer a permanent tooth is out of the tooth socket, the less chance that tooth will survive. Experts predict that you have approximately 15-30 minutes before the tooth begins to slowly die. So, the idea is to place the knocked-out permanent tooth back into the tooth socket and call a dentist as soon as possible for the best possible chances of saving the tooth. According to Colgate.com:
When a tooth has been knocked out, the nerves, blood vessels and supporting tissues are damaged, too. The nerves and blood vessels can’t be repaired, but if your dentist can put the tooth back in place within an hour after it was knocked out, there’s a good chance that the supporting tissues will reattach and hold the tooth in place.
First Aid for Permanent Teeth
- Handle the tooth by the crown not the root.
- Gently rinse the tooth in milk or normal saline solution if it has debris on it.
- Replace the tooth in its socket, make sure it is facing the right way around.
- Once the tooth is in the socket, try to keep it as moist as possible -Saliva is best.
- Hold the tooth in place with some foil or by getting the injured to gently bite on a handkerchief.
- Contact your dentist immediately.
What if you can’t put the tooth back into the tooth socket
- Wrap it in glad wrap or store it in milk or normal saline solution.
- Contact your dentist immediately.
What not to do
- Do not try to clean the tooth with vigorous scrubbing or cleaning agents.
- Do not wait to contact a dentist. This is critical.
Special Thanks
Thanks goes to Better Health Channel for these great tips for treating a knocked-out tooth. For additional tips, please visit their website.
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