Recognizing The Benefits of Dental Implants

The loss of primary teeth is an important milestone in your child's dental development. Baby teeth are shed so as to prepare your child's mouth for the eruption of permanent/adult teeth.

Unfortunately, tooth shedding can cause anxiety for both you and your child, so it is important to know how to handle the process. Here is what to do when your child is losing their baby teeth so as to allow for the successful eruption of their adult teeth. 

Preparing for tooth loss

The process of tooth shedding often begins with the gums around the loose tooth swelling or becoming tender. If your child experiences pain or discomfort, you may relieve this by using a cold compress around the area. Prematurely wiggling or pulling out a loose tooth can cause pain and excessive bleeding or leave a fragment of the tooth behind, causing possible inflammation. Encourage your child to gently push the loose tooth with their finger and tongue until it comes off on its own. 

After the tooth comes off, some bleeding may occur, which can be halted by putting pressure on the wound using gauze. The discomfort or bleeding will usually resolve once the tooth comes off. Be sure to encourage your child to brush softly and avoid hard foods so that the wounded tissue can heal naturally. Finally, avoid giving your child mouth rinses, as they can potentially aggravate the wound and delay healing. 

Know when to visit a dentist

In some cases, professional care may be needed during the tooth shedding process. You may need to schedule an appointment with a dentist if your child's permanent teeth start erupting while the primary teeth are still intact, a scenario that usually causes a double row of teeth. In such cases, the dentist may intervene and extract a stubborn primary tooth so as to create room for the emerging permanent tooth. 

Similarly, professional intervention may be needed when a primary tooth is lost prematurely due to an accident. Aside from allowing your child to speak and chew properly, baby teeth also hold space for the emerging adult teeth. If a baby tooth is lost early, other teeth may move into the space left behind, causing teeth to be crooked. The emerging adult tooth may also be crowded out before it comes in, which is why dentists usually install artificial space maintainers to prevent such complications. 

Any excessive bleeding or swelling may also warrant an appointment with a child's dentist so that the gum line and underlying adult tooth can be examined for complications.