What will a dentist do for a broken baby tooth?
To avoid big tears and a broken baby tooth, vigilance is required in certain rooms of the home, such as in a tiled bathroom (slippery), a bedroom with bunk beds, the stairs, or other common home hazards. However, we understand that even extra vigilance cannot completely help you avoid accidents in which your child’s teeth are affected.
What are the consequences of a shock on your child’s teeth?
The consequences of a shock- a fall or accident- depend on the intensity of the impact and the age of the child at the time of the accident. The younger the child, the higher the risk of trauma. Most often, an incisor moves forward or backward, which can be particularly dangerous for the permanent tooth that will appear a few years later. It can also happen that a tooth falls out, if the shock is violent or, conversely, goes into the gum until you no longer see it at all. More rarely, the visible part of the tooth, called the crown, may be cracked or partly broken. In all cases, the main danger following a shock is that the germ of the permanent tooth, present in the gums from birth, is affected or becomes infected a few months later.
What to do when baby breaks a baby tooth or part of his tooth?
No need to try to put the tooth back in place if it has fallen out. This could only encourage the development of potential infections. The main thing is to clean your child's mouth well. You can also put a compress soaked in an alcohol-free mouthwash on the affected area. It is also recommended that you avoid brushing your child’s teeth until the consultation of a dentist, within 24 to 48 hours after the fall. The dentist will examine your child and will prescribe an x-ray if necessary to check that the germ of the permanent tooth is not affected. By visualizing the inside of the gum, they may even discover the tooth that was thought to be lost.
How your dentist will repair a broken tooth
If the root is intact and your child is over 2 and a half years old, it is possible that your dentist can devitalize the tooth (i.e. remove the nerve) under local anesthesia, in order to keep it in place and thus avoid alignment problems with their other teeth. If, on the other hand, an infection has developed on the traumatized tooth, it must be extracted, again under local anesthesia.
If our child is over 3 and a half years old, your dentist or dental surgeon will be able to offer a pediatric prosthesis intended to maintain the space between the teeth, until the missing tooth is replaced by the permanent tooth. This prosthesis is a kind of arch that rests on the molars and holds two or three teeth in place with a wire.
A dental resin against a broken tooth
Finally, if the crown is partly broken or cracked, the visible part of the tooth can be reconstructed with a white composite material or enamel.
Whatever the treatment proposed by your dentist, your child will have to come back regularly for consultation, until the arrival of their permanent teeth.
When a child breaks a baby tooth, the aim of the treatment is to prevent an infection from developing and attacking the germ of the future tooth, and to allow the permanent tooth to grow in the best conditions by reserving the necessary space for it.