| One of the most immediate and traumatic dental | | | | tooth with water, this will be done at the dental |
| events both from an emotional and physical | | | | office with sterile saline. |
| standpoint is an avulsed or knocked out tooth. | | | | Get right in the car and head over because time |
| We all lead active lives these days, playing ball, | | | | is of the essence. Less than 30 minutes and there |
| running, and biking. So, this can definitely happen | | | | is an excellent prognosis, 30-60 minutes and there |
| to you. Let's get prepared together. If this | | | | is a good chance of successful re-implantation. |
| happens to you or to someone else when you | | | | More than an hour and the prognosis goes down |
| are present, there are some important things to | | | | dramatically. Don't scrub or clean the tooth if it is |
| remember which can make or break the success | | | | dirty. Let us do that for you. There is important |
| of us saving your tooth. You can be a real hero in | | | | tissue on the root of the tooth which helps in the |
| your community by following some of our | | | | healing process. |
| guidelines. | | | | Mostly, try not to panic, it will be OK. We have |
| First, if the tooth is displaced and still in your | | | | wonderful technology for saving and replacing |
| mouth, partially in the socket, do not remove it. | | | | teeth and tooth structures which will make it look |
| Call the dentists office immediately, so we can | | | | as good as before the accident. We have never |
| help with the process as soon as possible. It is | | | | had a patient in all the years of our service who |
| important to get the tooth stabilized back into | | | | we could not find a permanent tooth solution for |
| your proper bite as soon as humanly possible. | | | | in the event of an unsuccessful tooth |
| Second, if the tooth has been completely | | | | re-implantation. |
| knocked from the socket, do not panic. Find the | | | | By taking the proper precautions immediately |
| tooth, which will likely be the immediate region of | | | | when a tooth gets knocked out you will increase |
| the accident. If luck would have it and a "Save a | | | | the chances of successful reimplantion of the |
| Tooth" kit is near-by (Hank's Solution), place it in | | | | tooth exponentially. Remember the faster you |
| the receptacle and proceed to the office. If this is | | | | get the tooth back in the socket the higher the |
| not available, put it in the victim's cheek and get | | | | success rate. After an hour has passed the |
| somewhere (a neighbor, knock on a door of a | | | | chance of the tooth surviving the accident |
| house near the accident), anywhere to obtain | | | | dramatically decreases. You are now a new |
| some milk and place it in a cup and get on over | | | | expert on transporting and treating a knocked out |
| to us in 20 minutes or less. If milk is not available | | | | tooth. Just like a paramedic it now becomes your |
| then saline, water or the patients own saliva will | | | | job to handle an avulsed tooth properly and |
| have to do. Often times realistically the most | | | | efficiently to get it to the dentist in proper |
| accessible storage in an emergency is the patients | | | | condition for saving the tooth. |
| inside cheek. Do not be tempted to rinse the | | | | |