No one likes the idea of their child chipping or breaking a tooth, but accidents happen–especially to adventurous kids! It’s helpful to know how to help your child, whether they accidentally damage a tooth playing at the park, participating in a contact sport, or biting down on something hard.
Take a Deep Breath
It’s hard to see your child in pain! Do your best to remain calm so you can focus on the next steps and influence your child to remain calm as well.
Evaluate Your Child’s Mouth
Look in your child’s mouth and in the area of the accident to see if there are any tooth fragments. If your child’s mouth is bleeding, place a piece of nonwoven gauze over it. Gentle pressure will help staunch the bleeding.
Place any tooth fragments in a glass of milk to preserve them. Your child’s dentist may be able to reattach the broken tooth fragments!
Ease Swelling
If your child is experiencing swelling or pain, have them ice their cheeks for 15-20 minutes at a time with a cold compress or a bag of frozen veggies.
Visit Your Emergency Pediatric Dentist in Austin, TX
Call our office as soon as possible for an emergency appointment. At Austin Pearls Pediatric Dentistry, we offer same-day emergency dental appointments for children in Austin, TX.
What happens next depends on the extent of the damage to the tooth. For small chips, your child’s tooth edge may just need to be smoothed out. A larger chip may benefit from dental bonding. More severe damage can call for a veneer or dental crown.
At Austin Pearls Pediatric Dentistry, we offer comprehensive pediatric dental services and strive to help our young patients establish healthy dental habits. Whether your child needs a general cleaning and checkup or a restorative treatment to repair a damaged tooth, we’ve got you covered! We also offer flexible payment options. Please contact us to schedule an appointment!
Chipped teeth image from Authority Dental under CC 2.0