Treatment
Dental injuries and trauma care in Nuneaton
A fall, a sports collision or an accident can chip, loosen, displace or knock out a tooth. The first hour matters most for a knocked-out tooth, and the months that follow matter for every injured tooth, because the pulp inside can die quietly long after the bruising has gone.
If a tooth has been knocked out
- Pick the tooth up by the crown, not the root. If it is dirty, rinse it briefly in milk or saline — do not scrub it.
- If you can, put it straight back into its socket the right way round and bite gently on a clean cloth to hold it in place.
- If you cannot replant it, keep it in a cup of milk, or in the mouth between the cheek and gum. Do not let it dry out and do not store it in water.
- Get to a dentist within the hour — book and say that a tooth has been knocked out.
This applies to adult teeth. A baby tooth that has been knocked out is not replanted, because doing so can damage the adult tooth forming beneath it; the child should still be seen so that the injury can be checked.
Other injuries
A chipped tooth with no symptoms can often wait a day or two for assessment, but a chip that exposes pink tissue, a tooth that has been pushed out of position, or one that is loose and painful should be seen promptly. Splinting, repositioning and protecting the exposed pulp are time-sensitive.
Why injured teeth need watching
The blood supply to a tooth enters through a tiny opening at the tip of the root. A blow can bruise or sever it, and the pulp may die weeks or months later without any pain. Signs include a tooth that gradually darkens, a gum boil appearing above it, or infection showing on an X-ray. An injured tooth is therefore reviewed over roughly a year — with nerve tests and X-rays at intervals — so that any problem is caught and treated before it damages the bone.
Treatment when the pulp has died
In a fully developed tooth, root canal treatment removes the dead tissue and seals the root. In a young tooth whose root has not finished forming, the aim is different: to protect what remains of the living tissue so that the root can keep growing, or to seal the open root end with a biocompatible material. Cases like these are planned carefully with the family and the child's own dentist.
Working with your dentist
Injured teeth often need both the endodontic care provided here and restorative work — bonding, a veneer or a crown — from your own dentist. A report with X-rays is sent after each visit so that the two parts of the treatment fit together.