Lost Tooth Or Dental Trauma

Dental Trauma – When A Tooth Is Knocked Out

  1. Locate the tooth immediately. Reimplanting the tooth is better than replacing the tooth.
  2. Pick up the tooth by the crown (the chewing surface) NOT the root. Try not to touch the root of the tooth.
  3. If dirty or covered in debris, clean the tooth as gently as possible, by rinsing the tooth with water, for the minimum time needed to make it clean.
    • Do not use soap or chemicals.
    • Do not scrub the tooth.
    • Do not dry the tooth.
    • Do not wrap the tooth in a tissue or cloth
  4. Reposition the tooth in the socket immediately, if possible.
    • The sooner the tooth is replaced, the greater the likelihood it will survive.
    • To reinsert, carefully push the tooth into the socket with your fingers, or position above the socket and close your mouth slowly. Hold the tooth in place with your fingers or by gently biting down on it.
    • If you are not comfortable or confident doing this and no medical help is available, store the tooth.
  5. Storing the tooth – Keep the tooth moist at all times. The tooth must not be left outside the mouth to dry. If it cannot be replaced in the socket, put it in one of the following:
    • Emergency tooth preservation kit (such as Save-a-Tooth®)
    • Milk
    • Mouth (next to cheek)
    • The tooth’s natural environment is salvia and blood. Have the patient spit into small container/snap lock bag to keep the tooth moist.
    • Regular tap water is not recommended for long-term storage because the root surface cells do not tolerate water for long periods of time.
  6. See a dentist as soon as possible (ideally within 60 minutes). Please bring the tooth with you to the emergency appointment.