Emergency Access

First Aid Advice
Knocked out tooth - Avulsed Tooth
An avulsed tooth is a tooth that has been knocked out of its socket, this means it is either totally out and lyingon the floor, or is hanging in the mouth by the nerve orthinly attached piece of tissue. If the tooth is still inplace but loose or dislodged then this is not totallyavulsed and the treatment is slightly different.It is also worth noting that the information below is foran adult tooth, children's teeth (deciduous) teeth areoften knocked out much more easily but the implications arefar less sever as they will have their adult teethunderneath. We'd still recommend visiting a dentist, but itis not normally an emergency and applying pressure to thebleeding socket will normally be sufficient along with somepain killers appropriate to the child age.

So what do you do?
If the tooth is in one piece pick it up by the crown,avoiding the root as this can easily be damaged. Make sureit is oriented the correct way round, then try to place itback in to the patients mouth in the correct place. This isoften difficult due to bleeding, swelling or other facialinjuries... but it is the ideal option.

Once the tooth is back in place, make a pad of gauze andask the patient to gently bite together, this will keep thetooth in place. You now need to get to a dentist straightaway for treatment.

If the tooth can't be replanted then you have 2 options:
Keep the tooth in your mouth and store it between yourteeth and cheek, this is the best place as it is bathed inthe patient's own salivaPlace it in a cup of milk for transportThen make an appointment with an emergency dentist as soonas possible.

Please don't try to clean the tooth with antiseptic orother cleansing agent as this can damage the tooth makingan future implanting by us impossible.

How do I stop the gum socket from bleeding?
Your teeth and gums have a healthy supply of blood, so itis normal for the socket to bleed quite a lot after a toothhas been knocked out or avulsed.

To control this bleeding simply place a pad of gauze overthe socket and ask the patient to bite down on it. You willneed to keep this in position for around 10 minutes inorder to allow the blood to clot and the bleeding to stop.

Once the bleeding is controlled you can replant the toothif the swelling and other possible facial injuries allow.

Replacing a knocked out or avulsed tooth
The first thing to assess is the tooth itself, if it isshattered then replacing it will be difficult. However ifit is in one piece it is often possible to replace it.

If the tooth has shattered, then try to gather together allthe pieces together and keep them in water to prevent themdrying out. Then call us for an emergency appointment. Wemay be able to replant the tooth, but worst case is thatthe pieces can be used to help us as a guide when making areplacement tooth for you.