Healthy Habits - My Kid’s Tooth Was Knocked Out – Can it Be Saved?!

4 Tips to Save a Knocked-Out Tooth by Dr. W. Craig Noblett, President of the American Association of Endodontists

More than five million teeth are knocked out each year, and children under 10 years of age are

extremely susceptible to this injury. Many parents don’t know that a knocked-out tooth can often be saved if treated quickly by a dental specialist. Nothing looks, feels, or functions like natural teeth, and endodontists are the experts in saving teeth.

 

I want to share important steps parents can take to quickly save their child’s natural tooth in an

emergency.

 

1.  Locate the tooth immediately; don’t leave it at the site of the accident. Pick it up by the crown (the chewing surface), not the root, and handle it carefully. To minimize injury to the root, touch only the crown. If the tooth is dirty, gently rinse it with water only.

2.  Insert the tooth back into its socket immediately, if possible. The sooner the tooth is back in its socket, the greater the likelihood it will survive. To insert the tooth, gently push the tooth into the socket with your fingers. Hold the tooth in place with your fingers or have the injured person gently bite down on it. A gauze can be used to bite on as well.

 

3.  Keep the tooth moist at all times. The tooth must not be left outside the mouth to dry. If it cannot be placed back in the socket, place the tooth in an emergency tooth preservation kit or milk. If none of these options are practical, use water.

 

4.  Seek professional help immediately. Dial 911 if there are other injuries to tend to. You may wish to see an endodontist or the nearest available dentist within 30 minutes or as quickly as possible. Endodontists, dentists who specialize in saving teeth through techniques and technologies including root canals and pain diagnosis, are often available on short notice. Their advanced training makes them ideally suited to saving a knocked-out tooth in many cases. To find one in your area visit Find My Endodontist. Many of these injuries are sports related, so if you are a parent of a basketball, hockey, lacrosse, or field hockey player, you should consider having an endodontist in your phone contacts to facilitate getting care should the need arise. I’d recommend sharing this information with your child’s coach or team manager as well.