Roughhousing at School: What to Do about Injured Teeth

Depending on your child and your school, there may or may not be a bit of roughhousing that goes on during the day. While most such play, as long as it doesn't devolve into bullying, is looked upon as a normal part of growing up, it does carry with it the chance of injury. If something happens to your kids at school and one of their teeth is chipped, cracked, broken, or worst of all, comes out, you need to know what to do.

Let's go from worst to least:

Tooth Comes Out

If a kid's first tooth comes out, it's just a matter of waiting until the adult tooth comes in. If an adult tooth comes out of your kid's mouth, it's panic time. They've got less than an hour before the tooth and the socket die and the tooth cannot be reattached.

Here’s what to do:

• Put the tooth in a glass of milk, or, if milk isn't available, in a glass of salty water.
• Take the tooth and the child directly to a dentist who does surgery; preferably a reconstructive dentist.
• Have the tooth put back immediately.
• Expect the child to take the next day or two off of school while they recover -- oral surgery isn't easy.

Broken Tooth

If a tooth actually breaks off -- not just a chip, but a substantial break -- you need to hurry to the dentist. Depending on the break itself, it may be more effective for the dentist to glue the broken piece back on, or it may be better for him to make a porcelain cap to go over the butt of the tooth.

Cracked Tooth

When a tooth is cracked -- as in, the enamel has a visible, jagged opening in it -- it's still immediately dentist time. The child still shouldn't attempt to eat anything even if they feel OK. The dentist will almost certainly fill in the crack with some sort of enamel-like substance, and your kid should be ready for school the next day.

Chipped Tooth

It's not often that you can find the chip when a tooth gets chipped. If you can, you should head straight to the dentist to get it reattached. If you can't, you could way for a day or three, or not, it's up to you, because whether you do or not, the dentist is going to do the same thing -- fill in the chip with a tiny bit of porcelain and seal it in place.