Your healthy smile stays in place thanks to strong roots in the teeth and firm gum tissue. But accidents can happen to the best of us, such as a blow to the face. With enough pressure, impact trauma may cause a tooth to fall out of its socket.
Missing teeth can create a number of oral health complications, but if you knock out a tooth, there is a chance that your dentist can save this tooth and restore your smile. However, urgent action is necessary. You can react more quickly when you know what to do ahead of this dental emergency. Read on to learn the steps you should take as soon as possible if you knock out one or more teeth.
Preserve Your Knocked-Out Tooth
Your teeth remain strong and healthy thanks to their connection to your gums and the rest of your body via blood vessels. If you knock out a tooth, it loses this link and can quickly deteriorate in its health. So you must act swiftly to preserve the tooth.
Handle the tooth by its crown rather than its delicate root so that you can avoid harming the tooth further. Do not rub at the tooth with a cloth or other material to clean it. Instead, you can gently rinse it with water.
Place the tooth carefully back into its socket if you can. This way, your saliva can keep it moist and healthy. You may also tuck it into your cheek if the tooth will not fit properly into its socket.
If you worry about swallowing the tooth, you can also store it in a cup submerged in your spit. You might also keep it in a cup of milk or water. Milk will better protect a knocked-out tooth because it contains more nutrients that can keep it healthy than water.
Attend an Emergency Dental Evaluation
Call your dentist as soon as possible in the event of a knocked-out tooth. The dentist will ask you to come to their office for an emergency appointment right away. For optimal results, make sure you contact your dentist within an hour of this accident.
Bring your dislodged tooth with you to the dentist’s office. The dentist will examine your tooth as well as the rest of your mouth to see the extent of the damage. If the tooth remains intact, the dentist will place it back in its socket with a splint.
The tooth should heal within four weeks. It could take longer for this dental injury to heal if the tooth sustained a fracture. If the tooth suffers too much damage, the dentist might not be able to successfully reattach the tooth. In this case, you can talk to your dentist about tooth replacement options like dental implants that can restore your smile.
Do not delay treating a knocked-out tooth or other dental emergency. Otherwise, you could face severe long-term consequences for your oral health.