My Tooth Got Knocked Out: What Should I Do?

A lost baby tooth may come with a cute lisp and a visit from the tooth fairy, but a lost permanent tooth warrants a trip to the emergency dentist. That’s because permanent teeth don’t get replaced with another tooth when you lose them, unlike a baby tooth.

Teeth may be strong, but they’re not invincible. Believe it or not, approximately 5 million teeth get knocked out of position each year. And, surprisingly, children and adults have a nearly equal risk of ending up in this situation because of the most common causes, from sports mishaps and falling off bikes to being involved in car accidents. 

Fortunately, Dr. Benedict Kim and our team at A Caring Dental Group offer emergency dentistry services in Cleveland, Ohio. If you take the right steps and preserve your tooth properly, we could help save it. 

But you can’t wait to take action. If you knocked out a tooth, take these steps immediately to give yourself the best chances of saving it.

Don’t panic

First things first — anything that can cause a tooth to get knocked out will likely be alarming. However, it’s crucial to do what you can to stay calm and avoid panicking. If you can find and properly preserve your tooth, our providers can potentially repair it and reimplant it in your jaw. 

To start, call A Caring Dental Group to let us know what happened and that you’re on your way. We can give you personalized instructions about the emergency dental services you need to treat situations like knocked-out or broken teeth.

However, you need to stay calm and act fast to save your tooth, so don’t lose time panicking. Just take a deep breath and handle the tooth carefully; you have approximately 60 minutes of viability.

Be careful with the tooth

When you find your lost tooth, only touch it by the crown, or the visible part of the tooth you can see when it’s in your mouth. Do whatever you can to avoid handling the root, which can damage the tooth and reduce your dentist’s chances of saving it. 

After finding the broken tooth or knocked-out tooth, carefully rinse it with bottled water or milk. Don’t scrub, scrape, or use soap, alcohol, or tap water on it — exposing it to chemicals can damage it.

Finally, it’s essential to keep the tooth from drying out. If you can, rinse your mouth and gently place the tooth back into its socket or tuck it in between your gums and cheek. If that’s not an option, place it in a small, sealed container of milk or a special tooth preservation kit like “Save-A-Tooth.” Do not put a knocked-out tooth in tap water.

Don’t wait to get help

It’s crucial to get to your dentist’s office as soon as possible. The faster our team can assess the situation and take action, the better the chances of saving your tooth. 

After your emergency appointment to replant or repair your tooth, you should expect to have a second visit. This follow-up appointment allows us to confirm that your tooth successfully reattached to your jaw. 

We also use this visit to determine whether you require any additional care. For example, a knocked-out tooth is vulnerable to internal decay, so they sometimes require root canals after reimplantation. 

If we can’t save your tooth, you don’t have to live with gaps or imperfections. In addition to emergency dental care, we offer numerous solutions to replace missing teeth, from dental implants to dentures.

Did you knock out a tooth? Don’t wait to get emergency care. Call A Caring Dental Group at 216-446-6977.