General |4 min read

Common Children’s Tooth Injuries that Happen at Home

An emergency dentist examining a boy's teeth

Almost half of all children will sustain a tooth injury.

When kids play, fight, or fall, their risk of tooth injury increases.

In other words:

They risk damaging a tooth as soon as they’re old enough to start exploring.

Keep in mind:

Most oral injuries are preventable.

And:

Baby teeth are responsible for the foundation of your child’s permanent teeth. This is why tooth injury prevention is essential.

You should also know what to do when a tooth injury occurs.

Below, you’ll learn:

  • Common tooth injuries in children.
  • Tooth injury prevention tips.
  • What to do for an injured tooth.

The most common injury: A prematurely lost baby tooth

The most common injury to primary (baby) teeth is the premature loss of the front teeth.

Typically this happens during rough play, sports, or tripping and falling on their face.

If your child prematurely loses a baby tooth, visit your dentist immediately. 

Tip: Place the tooth in a saline solution, tooth preservation kit, or a container of milk.

A broken baby tooth

Broken teeth are common.

They result from a high impact force to the face or jaw.

If your child breaks a tooth:

Preserve the broken tooth piece in an ADA-approved kit… This text opens a new tab to the SmartPractice website for purchase… or milk.

Then:

Call their children’s dentist immediately.

Looking for an emergency dentist in Terre Haute, IN?

Dislocated permanent tooth

When your child loses a permanent tooth, it’s a dental emergency.

  1. Locate the missing tooth.
  2. If possible, have your child put the lost tooth back in its socket immediately.
  3. Place gauze over the tooth (or bleeding gum) and have them bite down.
  4. Get your child to the dentist right away.

At least 85 percent of teeth put back in the tooth socket within five minutes survive.

It’s important to know if your child’s dentist offers emergency dentistry.

A pediatric dentist will help you manage the situation and do what’s best for your child.

We offer emergency, preventative and pediatric dentistry in Terre Haute, IN, at Dentistry Just For Kids.

How to prevent common dental injuries at home

Avoid an emergency dental visit with these tips.

Guard off stairs and fireplaces

Gates prevent accidental falls on stairs and make your fireplace inaccessible.

For stairs:

Consider placing baby gates at the top and bottom.

For fireplaces:

Buy a sturdy safety gate to prevent your baby from crawling into unsafe territory.

If you have fireplace tools, keep them behind the fireplace safety gate.

Prevent tripping as much as you can

Tripping is the leading cause of prematurely lost or dislocated permanent teeth. 

You can prevent oral injuries at home with these simple steps.

Walk around your house and:

  • Look for uneven surfaces in your home
  • Secure wires or cords that ct across high traffic
  • Make sure rugs are flat and stay in place
  • Declutter narrow walkways

Protect your athlete’s teeth

Did you know:

Your child is 60 times more likely to sustain damage to their teeth when not wearing a mouthguard? 

Or:

Dental injuries account for nearly 20 percent of all sports-related injuries?

If your child plays a sport, get a mouthguard to help prevent oral injuries during sports.

Also:

You should always be prepared for a dental emergency by:

  • Having a tooth preservation system – like the ADA Approved Save-A-Tooth on hand.
  • Knowing where you can take your child for a dental emergency.
  • Having your local emergency dentists’ number saved.

Get emergency dental services in Terre Haute, IN

Do you have more questions about tooth injuries? Do you need an emergency dentist for your child?

Unfortunately, we know children’s tooth injuries are an everyday occurrence.

We’re here to help if you need an emergency dentist in Terre Haute.

Call our office for your child’s tooth injuries.

Dentistry Just For Kids is located in Terre Haute, IN… This text opens a new tab to our Google listing…. We proudly serve patients from across the Wabash Valley, including Terre Haute, Clinton, Rockville, Covington, Brazil, Greencastle, Sullivan, Linton, Shakamak, Vincennes, Marshall, Paris, Robinson, Olney, Effingham, Charleston, Casey, Mattoon, Greenup, Flora, and Newton.


Editor’s note: This post was originally published in March 2019 and has been completely revamped for comprehensiveness and timeliness.