Treatments Required For An Avulsed Tooth
If you have a dental accident and one of your teeth is knocked out of the mouth, then you should seek out an emergency dentist to help with the injury. The dental professional can place the tooth back in the mouth if you see him or her within a very short timeframe. Typically, you will need to make arrangements to see a dentist within a few hours. Treatments do involve putting the tooth back. However, there are a few other things the dentist will do to make sure the tooth can remain intact. Keep reading to learn about them.
Root Canal Treatment
You may not know that you need to put your dislodged tooth in a cup of milk or against your cheek to keep it moist. This helps to keep the cells alive that sit on the outside of the tooth. These cells are located on the tooth root and are needed so the tooth can adhere to the socket properly. While the root cells can remain alive as long as the tooth is kept moist, the tissues in the pulp chamber will die. These tissues will no longer have an active and reliable source of nutrients once the tooth is knocked out. Specifically, the blood vessels that feed the tooth are severed when the tooth is knocked out.
Since the tooth pulp will no longer receive nutrition, the pulp will die. The dead tissues will degrade and may leak from the bottom of the tooth root. This can cause an infection. To reduce this concern, your dentist will complete a root canal on the tooth. This does not need to happen right away, but it should be scheduled shortly after the tooth is secured back in the jaw. Usually, a dentist will like to perform the treatment within about a week.
Tooth Splinting
Once your tooth is placed back in its socket, the dentist will need to make sure that the tooth is secure and unable to move. This allows the tooth to replant itself properly and for the tissues and bone in the region to grow around the tooth. To keep the tooth immobile, something called a dental splint will be secured. A flexible splint may be a good option or a more rigid splint will be used.
Rigid splints are ideal in keeping a tooth from moving and they involve the placement of something called an arch bar. The metal bar is attached to the avulsed tooth and the two nearby teeth as well. A ligature wire and a bracket may also be secured to the tooth. This will look much like an orthodontic appliance. Splints can be secured on the front, back, or the top of the tooth to ensure security. Click here for more information.
Share