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Home › Articles › Health Issues › Children's Dental Emergencies

Children's Dental Emergencies

A Parent's Guide to Chips, Fractures and Tooth Avulsions

By Shannon McKelden

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When the school called to say my 10-year-old son had broken his front tooth while jumping rope, I panicked. Should I take him to the emergency room? To the dentist's office? Should the piece of tooth be saved? Would his smile be permanently disfigured?

According to the International Association of Dental Traumatology, one out of two children sustain dental trauma, most between the ages of 8 and 12. Common causes include sports injuries and falls especially in toddlers learning to walk.

Handling the Situation
When it comes to dental trauma, the most important thing is to assess the damage and then seek appropriate medical attention as soon as possible. According to Dr. William F. Vann, Jr., distinguished professor of pediatric dentistry for the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, when it comes to dental trauma, timely care often makes a big difference in the prognosis of an injury.

There are three main types of injuries that can occur to teeth. These include the following:

  • Tooth fractures
  • Loosening
  • Avulsions (knocked-out teeth)
Tooth Fractures
"Chipped and fractured teeth should be examined by a dentist as soon as practical to make certain there are no more serious tooth injuries," Dr. Vann says.

Because of their location, the most common teeth to be damaged are the front incisors, so looks may also be affected when a tooth is chipped or broken. Though there is some disagreement between dentists, Dr. Vann says that tooth fragments can often be bonded back into place, resulting in excellent aesthetic outcome for the fractured tooth.

"A chipped tooth should be restored by a dentist with a composite (tooth-colored) filling," says Dr. Richard Landgren, director of the Pediatric Clinic for Arizona School of Dentistry and Oral Health. With colored fillings it is difficult to tell the tooth was ever damaged.

The best plan of action may just be to take the fragment with you and let your pediatric dentist decide the best plan for repair in your child's situation.

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