With kids of any age, particularly little ones, bumps and accidents happen almost daily. As much as you try to avoid them, dental emergencies can come up with your child. When you need this professional the most, your pediatric dentist is there to help! Being aware of the possibilities and the treatments available can help you be prepared and act quickly if one of these scenarios occurs.
Tooth Pain
Especially after Halloween, kids tend to eat a lot of sweets, which encourages cavity-causing bacteria and acids in the mouth. As a result, the decay can erode the enamel and lead to a toothache. Depending on how extensive the cavity is, your pediatric dentist may be able to restore the tooth with a filling or may need to perform a root canal in order to save the tooth before putting a crown over it.
Chipped or Cracked Tooth
Even if you tell your child not to bite on a pencil or chew on ice, they may choose to do so anyway, leading to a cracked tooth. Or perhaps a hit to the face while playing sports leaves a tooth chipped. Your pediatric dentist may restore the tooth with a dental crown, which will look and feel realistic.
Knocked-Out Tooth
Whether playing sports or at the park, a tooth may be forcefully knocked out of your child’s mouth. In the case of a permanent tooth, it’s particularly important to see a pediatric dentist as quickly as possible because there is a short period of time, about an hour, when the tooth can be saved.
Primary or baby teeth, which are supposed to come out eventually, probably won’t be placed back into the socket, but your pediatric dentist still needs to examine your child’s mouth to make sure nothing else has been damaged from the injury. Also, your child may need a space maintainer if the baby tooth was lost prematurely in order to keep the other teeth in alignment.
Oral Bleeding
Not all emergencies deal with teeth—sometimes, soft tissues are harmed and bleed. Getting the bleeding under control should be your first focus. It should stop within 10 minutes. If it doesn’t slow within this timeframe, take your child to the emergency room. Otherwise, visit your pediatric dentist to be sure that other oral structures haven’t been damaged as well and to get stitches, if necessary.
Hopefully, none of these situations will happen to your child, but if one does, you’ll know what to do and where to turn for help. As a result, your child can bounce back from a dental emergency and keep smiling!
About the Practice
Wash Park Pediatric Dentistry is located in Denver, Colorado, and is proud to have two highly skilled, board-certified pediatric dentists on staff. Dr. Patrick Bowman and Dr. Samantha Gardner each have extensive training and years of experience working with children ranging in age from infants to teenagers. If your child suffers a dental emergency, contact our office by calling 720-647-6310 or go online here.