Overview

Children and teenagers can get injuries that damage their teeth, gums or face. This might be because of a fall, or an accident while playing sports.

These injuries can:

• make teeth loose or wobbly
• fracture or break teeth
• move (displace) teeth out of position
• knock teeth out

Dental trauma (injury) can affect the future of your child’s teeth, so it’s important that they get dental care after any injury.

The treatment will depend on whether their baby teeth or adult teeth are injured.

If an adult tooth is loosened or knocked out, it might need to be moved back, or replaced, into its normal position. After this, the tooth might need a splint to hold it in place.

Splints for dental injuries

A splint can be used to hold the injured tooth in place.

It is usually made of a thin, flexible wire and a special cement.

The injured tooth is held in its correct position by fixing a splint to it, and 1 or more teeth on each side.

The splint is usually left on the teeth for 2 to 4 weeks. This depends on the type of injury.

Sometimes, a splint might need to be left on the tooth for up to 4 months. This happens if the root of the tooth is fractured (broken).

A removable splint is sometimes used, which can look like a sports mouth guard.

Looking after your splint

Brushing teeth

Your child should brush their teeth gently, using a soft toothbrush. Teeth should be brushed in the morning and at night every day.

If possible, brush the teeth after eating, especially around the splint.

Mouthwash

Your child can use Corsodyl^® mouthwash (0.2%), or Corsodyl^® dental gel (1%). You can buy these in a pharmacy. Your dentist will give you instructions about how to use these.

Eating

Your child should eat soft food while the splint is in place. For example,

• pasta
• soup
• yoghurt
• bananas

Try to avoid hard foods. Talk to your dentist about foods to avoid if you are unsure.

Pain

Your dentist will recommend painkillers for your child, such as paracetamol. Always use these as recommended by your dentist. Do not use more than the recommended amount (dose) on the packet.

Contact sport

Your child will need to avoid contact sports while the splint is in place.

Appointments

Your child might have more appointments after having their splint fitted. This will depend on the type of injury they’ve had.

The hospital dentist might want to see your child a few days after the splint is fitted. This is to check the teeth, and see if the splint is secure.

Your child must come to all appointments as instructed. A splint can damage the teeth if left in place for too long.

Your child might only need 1 or 2 visits to the hospital before being asked to see their local dentist for a follow-up appointment.

If the damage to your child’s teeth is worse, they might need to have appointments at the hospital for a few years.

Complications after dental injury

Complications include sensitivity, pain, and damage to the nerve of the tooth. Damage to the nerve can lead to an infection, which would need root canal treatment.

Root canal treatment

Root canal treatment removes the infected or dead nerve. It is often done with local anaesthetic, which is an injection to numb the area so your child does not feel any pain.

Root canal treatment can take several visits to complete.

In teeth that have been completely knocked out and put back in, root canal treatment might not work. The tooth might have to be removed and replaced with a false one.

Sometimes the infected root might start to dissolve. This can lead to tooth loss, and needing a false tooth.

Preventing dental injuries

If your child plays contact or ball sports (such as football, rugby or hockey), they should wear a mouth guard to protect their teeth.

If your child still has baby teeth as well as adult teeth, their mouth guard will need to be changed regularly as their mouth changes, to be sure of a good fit.