It’s very common for a child to knock out their two front teeth when they are younger. It often happens because of just common playing that ends with an accident. If your child is lucky, then they will knock out baby teeth that are going to fall out anyway. When your older child knocks out their adult teeth, this poses a bigger issue. Let’s look at what to do when your child gets their front teeth knocked out.
Immediate Care
Knocking out a tooth or two is one of the most common playground injuries, and considered by many to be simply a fact of childhood. The first thing you’ll want to do is to make sure your child is ok. Ensure they haven’t experienced any other injuries in the process of knocking out their teeth. If you can, look for the missing tooth. You should then take your child to an immediate care facility to have them checked out. You want to make sure there isn’t anything else lodged in the gums that could be unsafe. Ongoing bleeding should be addressed as well.
Assessing Baby Teeth Versus Adult Teeth
It might seem like common sense that baby teeth would just be left alone, in order for the adult teeth to come in when they are ready. In fact, it’s still important to address the loss of baby teeth. A dentist may want to do an x-ray to determine if the adult teeth were damaged in the gum area. This would require further action to take place when they start to come in.
Repairing the Injury
Once your child has recovered, you’ll want to visit their dentist to inquire about having their teeth replaced. While a dentist may not be able to adhere to the original teeth back in their positions, there are a number of options that can replace the teeth. Caps and veneers are common options that replace adult teeth that have been knocked out. For younger children, a dentist will usually just wait for the adult teeth to come in if they are intact. While you can try to teach your child about protecting themselves while they play, let’s be honest — kids like to play hard, and playground accidents will inevitably happen. In case of accident, make sure that you seek appropriate medical care to make sure your child is ok. Utilize a reputable dentist that will help restore your child’s smile to its original condition.