For children, losing teeth is a part of growing up – often an exciting one that marks the transition into growing adult teeth. However, if you get a tooth knocked out as an adult or young adult with all their mature teeth, it’s considered a medical emergency.
It’s definitely not an everyday occurrence to have your teeth knocked out – but that does not mean it cannot and does not happen. Particular groups are at high risk. Those who play contact sports are more likely to accidentally sustain an injury to the face that involves a lost tooth. Other causes of lost teeth include car accidents, falls, and even fistfights – any event that could lead to facial trauma.
It’s essential to act quickly if you have lost a tooth. Time is a critical factor in whether or not your tooth will survive and be able to be implanted back into the socket. If the tooth is put back into the socket or stored well within five minutes of the injury, there’s a good chance you have saved the tooth. Between five minutes and an hour, the survival rate of teeth remains high.
After an hour, if the tooth is still not correctly stored or back in the socket, chances are low that your tooth will be viable for implantation back into your mouth. If your child loses a tooth, check to ensure it’s an adult tooth – not a baby tooth. Baby teeth are not put back into the mouth. Instead, you just wait for the adult tooth to grow in.
Even if your child has lost a baby tooth, you should contact a dentist to check them over. When a child loses a baby tooth due to traumatic injury, tooth fragments may get stuck in their gums or lips.
If you or a child does lose an adult tooth, the first step is to find it. Then, place the tooth back in the socket. While you cannot personally re-implant it, you can gently push it back into the socket. This contact gives the tooth the best chance of survival.
Here are some ground rules for placing a tooth back into its socket:
Putting the tooth back in the socket is a good treatment until you reach emergency care.
If you are not able to place a tooth back in the socket, seeking medical attention is even more urgent. The tooth needs to be stored in a moist environment. You have a few options for this.
The tooth can be stored in the cheek, where saliva will keep it moist. Remember, this is not a child-friendly option, as children may be prone to swallowing the tooth.
You can also put your tooth in milk, which is a great way to store it for a dentist because of the nutrients in milk. Keep the tooth in milk until you reach emergency care.
Whatever you do, never put your tooth in water. The tooth’s roots do not like being exposed to water for long.
While some causes, like car accidents, are unpredictable if you are an athlete who plays a high-contact sport, wearing a mouth guard can protect the teeth by preventing the impact of any trauma from causing bad damage.
In fact, dentists can custom-make mouth guards for you to keep you and your teeth safe effectively.