Emergency Treatment of Dental Injuries in Sport!

[Lisa]

With recent discussion of mouth guards on the forum and those that wear them and those that don't , a review of exactly what to do should a dental injury occur may be in order.

So, I happened to go to the dentist today and this is some advice and information he told me:

Treatment depends on exactly what happens to the tooth when the injury occurs.

Fracture of a tooth (broken tooth):

Stabilize the toot that is left in the mouth by having the injured party gently bit on a towel or handkerchief to control the bleeding. The pulp nerve may be exposed which is extremely painful. Transport immediately to the dentist.

Luxation of tooth (tooth is in socket, but in wrong position):

There are three types of luxation.

1. Extruded tooth: The tooth hangs down from the top or is raided up on the bottom
2. Lateral displacement: Tooth is pushed back or pulled forward along jawline.
3. Intruded tooth: Tooth is pushed into gum and has a "short" appearance.

For all Luxations, biting down on a towel or handkerchief and transport to dentis immediately is important so that manual repositioning may be tried.

Avulson (Entire tooth is knocked out):

1. Avoid additional trauma to the tooth while handling. Do not handle tooth by the root. Do not brush or scrub tooth. Do not sterilize the tooth
2. Gently rinse the tooth with water if debris is on tooth
3. If possible, reimplant tooth and stabilize by biting down on a towel
4. Time is very important. Reimplantation within 30 minutes has the highest degree of success rate so the patient needs to see the dentis immediately.

If you are unable to reimplant a knocked out tooth or if you have a piece of the tooth that needs transportation, you need to transport that tooth/piece carefully.

BEST: Place tooth in a saline solution.
2nd: Place tooth in cold milk
3rd: Wrap tooth in saline soaked gauze.
4th: Place toot in cup of water.

Well, that is all I got. Certainly hope no one ever needs this. Remember a good mouth guard can protect you from many injuries including dental injuries. Train smart!

 

[swiftpete]

When i was younger I got a good whack which made the teeth on the right upper side of my mouth all move inwards so they were facing more towards the centre of my mouth rather than straight down. tugged them all back into place that night and thankfully they're still in there now, felt awful though! Don't recommend it.
Thanks for the tips anyway. Hopefully my teeth will stay in there for a few more years!

 

[lhommedieu]

Great advice. I had one of my front teeth knocked out when I was younger. It was still hanging by the root and prompt emergency care by a dentist (within a couple of hours) ensured that it was saved. Your post argues for keeping a bottle of saline solution in the dojo.

The only problem was that the next week I was camping up in northern Canada for six weeks and the tooth was extremely sensitive to cold in the mornings...

When I got back I had a root canal done and 25 years later still have it my mouth.

The bottom line is that prompt emergency management plus expert care within a short time equals saved teeth.

Best,

Steve Lamade

 

[TigerWoman]

Wouldn't need any emergency care if you all wore a cage headgear. Plus it protectes the nose and eyes. I admit it took some getting used to though, maybe it was jsut that I didn't want to change. Sometimes change is good. TW

 

[HelloKitty]

Uh! That's really an important subject I had forgotten. I have a tournament next month and I have all my protective gear EXCEPT for the mouth guard! ^^

Ah! By the way, do you know a good dentist in dallas area? It would be very useful. =)

 

[shane]

This is being very nice to have an emergency treatment for the Teeth , I had one of my front teeth knocked out when I was younger. It was still suspending by the origin and punctual crisis care by a dental surgeon (within a twosome of hours) double-checked that it was saved.

 

[Tez3]

If your instructor knocks out your crown stick it back with superglue honest! Mines been in (and out and in again) for 2 years now!

 

[Dirty Dog]

Fractured teeth with exposed roots hurt. A lot. We have several high tech quick (but temporary) fixes in the ED. On your own, the best quick fix is paraffin. Buy some, keep it around. Bite down on a small piece and it pretty effectively seals the fracture. Removing the air contact with the root releaves the pain. Now go see a dentist without writhing around in the chair while you wait.

 

[kravmaga1]

Thank you for the post. It is good for me to know the information for tooth picking because last time the process hurts and bleeding also happened.