Dental Injuries
Introduction
Trauma to the face or teeth can result from auto accidents,
falls, and
injury from sports such as football, hockey, soccer, volleyball,
basketball, and baseball, etc. Patients suffering significant
head, neck
or facial trauma should be evaluated and treated in hospital
emergency
rooms. Such trauma may involve bleeding from the nose or ears,
concussion,
dizziness, lapse of memory, disorientation, severe headache and
earache,
or breaking (fracture) of the skull and/or jaws. Most hospitals
have on
their staff oral surgeons who can treat fractures of the upper
or lower
jaw and perform emergency tooth removal (dental extractions) and
reconstruction of the dental arches.
Wear and tear of cavities and chewing hard objects such as
pencils, ice
cubes, nuts, and hard candies, can also lead to tooth
fractures. Dental
injury without associated head and neck trauma can be evaluated
and
treated in a dental office. Such dental injuries include broken
(fractured) teeth, teeth totally knocked out of the mouth, or
teeth
displaced by unexpected external forces. These dental accidents
may be
associated with swelling of the gum and oral tissue. Cold packs
or ice
cubes placed either inside the mouth directly above the injured
tooth, or
outside on the cheeks or lips, can reduce pain and swelling
before the
patient reaches the dentist.
Next: What is a tooth fracture? »
- Root Canal - Read about root canal complications, pain, costs and symptoms and signs that a root canal is needed. The dental procedure is a treatment used to save an infected tooth.
- Toothache - Complete explanation of toothache causes including - dental cavities, dental abscess, gum disease, irritation of the tooth root, cracked tooth syndrome, temporomandibular disease, impaction, eruption, as well as diseases. of the heart, sinuses, and ears.
- Dental Crowns - Get information about types of dental crowns (permanent, temporary, porcelain), problems (cap falls out, pain, broken or loose crown) and procedure cost.
Latest Medical News
Specialty RSS
Slideshows