Most childhood dental dramas seem to happen at the worst possible time, like a Sunday afternoon or partway through the holidays when your usual dentist has shut up shop. Knowing the right first steps, and having an emergency dentist in Brisbane you can call, takes a lot of the panic out of the moment. Here is a calm, practical guide to handling the common dental dramas.
A knocked-out adult tooth is a race against the clock
If a permanent tooth gets knocked clean out, time is the thing that counts most. Pick the tooth up by the white crown. Give it a gentle rinse if it is dirty but skip the scrubbing.
Where you can, pop it straight back into the socket and have your child bite softly on a clean cloth to hold it there. If reinserting isn’t possible, store the tooth in a small container of milk, or even in your child’s own saliva.
Then call a dentist. The sooner that tooth is back where it belongs, the better the chances of saving it.
Baby teeth play by different rules
Here is where parents often get caught out. A knocked-out baby tooth should not be put back in. Pushing it back can damage the adult tooth quietly forming underneath. Keep your child comfortable and book an urgent check instead, so a dentist can make sure nothing else needs attention.
One more thing worth knowing. Any knock to the mouth or head deserves a quick safety check first. If your child is vomiting, drowsy, confused or has blurred vision, treat that as the priority and head to your nearest emergency department or call 000 before you worry about the tooth.
Knowing the right first steps takes a lot of the panic out of the moment.
Chips, cracks and toothache
Not every dental hiccup is a full-blown emergency, though a few are worth acting on quickly.
For a chipped or broken tooth, hold onto any pieces you can find and rinse your child’s mouth with cool water. Keep them off chewing on that side until they have been seen.
Toothache that won’t settle is another one to watch, especially when swelling tags along with it. Puffiness around the face or jaw, a fever or a child who seems generally unwell can all point to infection and that is not something to wait out across a long weekend.
Where to turn when it happens
Tracking down help on a weekend or public holiday is the part that stresses parents most. Pure Dentistry in Upper Mt Gravatt sees emergency cases seven days a week, including most public holidays, with phones answered from 5am right through to 11pm.
For nervous kids, happy gas is available on the day for many treatments, with no fasting beforehand. There is free undercover parking too, which is a small mercy when you are juggling a sore, teary child and a car boot full of holiday gear.
Appointments are needed, so a quick phone call first beats turning up unannounced.
This article is of a general nature and FYI only, because it doesn’t take into account your personal health requirements or existing medical conditions. That means it’s not personalised health advice and shouldn’t be relied upon as if it is. Before making a health-related decision, you should work out if the info is appropriate for your situation and get professional medical advice.
