DENTAL ACCIDENTS - WHAT TO DO
Is this a more serious injury? If you experience any of the following, please go straight to your nearest hospital emergency department:
- Loss of consciousness
- Have a headache that gets worse
- Feel drowsy and can’t wake up
- Can’t recognise people or places
- Vomit more than 3 times a day
- Behave unusually or seem confused
- Are very irritable
- Have seizures
- Have weak arms, legs, or are unsteady on feet
- Slurred speech
- Deep cuts
- Neck pain
- Broken facial bones
Is the injury an adult tooth or a baby (primary) tooth?
- Permanent adult front teeth usually come through about 6 or 7 years of age.
- Adult front teeth are larger and have more rounded edges.
- Baby (primary) teeth are smaller and are often square on the corners and sharp in the front edge from wear.
- The treatments for adult and baby teeth are different. Follow these links to learn more:
Further Information
Dental accidents are very common. 60% of all dental trauma occurs to children 14 and under, 30% to 15-21 year olds, and the remaining 10% to those over 22 years. The male to female injury ratio is 2:1.
One of the best ways to prevent tooth accidents is to wear a mouthguard.
For more detailed information about dental accidents, we highly recommend this website:
http://www.dentaltraumaguide.org/
For a great dental trauma first aid ‘app’ visit:
- https://itunes.apple.com/app/id527527459 (for Apple devices)
- https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.dentaltrauma (for Android devices)