Children’s teeth begin to change at the age of 5-6 years. The roots of milk teeth dissolve, they gradually fall out, and permanent molars are formed in their place. The first loose milk tooth is always a big event for both the child and his parents.
Only adults have new questions. Do you need to rush to remove a baby tooth? If so, how to do it right - should you go to the dentist or can you do it yourself? In this article you will find the answers.
Why milk teeth are important and is it worth hurrying to remove them
Changing teeth is a long process that takes more than one month and even more than one year. It can even last up to 15 years. Permanent molars usually grow in the order in which milk teeth fall out.
In most cases, the natural process of changing teeth proceeds normally, there are no complications, therefore, the intervention of doctors is not required. It happens that the process is slightly delayed. Experts note that there is no need to worry, there is no pathology in this.
If a year after the loss of a milk tooth in its place the root has not begun to grow, then the child should be taken to the doctor.
When milk teeth begin to wobble, experts recommend taking the time to remove them. They perform important functions:
- Provide correct eruption and further placement of molars in the mouth.
- Helps develop masticatory muscles.
- They preserve the places where molars will erupt in the future.
- Stimulates the normal growth and development of the jaw bones.
That is why one should not rush to pull out milk teeth and look for non-standard ways for this. On the contrary, you should try to keep them longer. In doing so, provide your child with adequate nutrition and make sure that he brushes his teeth regularly.
Possible complications after the extraction of a milk tooth ahead of time
The loss of a milk tooth is premature if it is necessary to wait more than a year before the eruption of the molar tooth. This can lead to negative consequences for the child:
- The preserved milk teeth will quickly take the place of the lost one. The root will subsequently have nowhere to erupt, and other permanent teeth will appear chaotically. So the child's bite will be disturbed, he will need a difficult and expensive treatment by an orthodontist.
- Often in such cases, the rate of development of the jaw changes. This leads to deformation of the entire dentition: the teeth simply do not have enough space, so they "climb" on top of each other and bend.
- In the vacated hole in the gum, a bone scar may form, and atrophy of the alveolar edge is not excluded. This makes it difficult for molars to erupt.
- There is a serious danger that the growth zone will be injured and the normal development of the jaw will be disrupted.
- The chewing load will increase and the incisors may be damaged. As a result, the chewing muscles will not be sufficiently stimulated and the molars will not grow properly.
What else threatens premature pulling out of a milk tooth:
- fracture or root aspiration;
- damage to the nerve and gums;
- pushing the tooth into soft tissues;
- breaking off the alveolar process;
- injury to adjacent teeth;
- dislocation of the jaw.
For these reasons, dentists resort to the extraction of milk teeth only if there are special indications. Even if there are such indications, all the same, at first the specialist is looking for a way to preserve the tooth until the moment when the molar begins to erupt.
If you cannot do without a dentist, choose one with special care - you can only trust your child to an experienced professional.
VIDEO: Consequences of early extraction of a milk tooth
Early extraction is called premature extraction of a milk tooth long before the moment when a permanent dentition tooth should erupt. After removal, the adjacent teeth move. An erupting tooth can take the wrong position in the jaw, damage the adjacent tooth, or not erupt at all. The early removal of several deciduous teeth is often the cause of malocclusion. Therefore, if there is a need to remove a milk tooth long before the eruption of a permanent one, you should definitely consult an orthodontist. Currently, there are devices, both removable and non-removable, that prevent teeth displacement and deformation of the bite as a whole.
When is it necessary and when not to take a child to the dentist for a baby tooth extraction?
Sometimes situations arise when a milk tooth has to be removed without waiting for it to fall out by itself.
It is imperative to take your child to the dentist if:
- the resorption of the root of the milk tooth is delayed, although the permanent one has already begun to grow;
- an inflammatory process occurs in the gum;
- the tooth is destroyed by caries so much that it cannot be restored;
- a fistula appeared on the gum;
- a cyst has formed at the root;
- the tooth is injured;
- the x-ray showed that the root had already resolved, but the tooth, which should have fallen out by the time, was still loose;
- the child experiences severe discomfort from a loose tooth.
The procedure also has a number of contraindications:
- acute inflammatory processes in the oral cavity;
- infectious diseases (tonsillitis, whooping cough);
- vascular or malignant tumor at the site of the tooth.
The dentist should be very careful when removing a milk tooth from a patient who suffers from:
- nervous disorders (problems with the central nervous system);
- kidney disease;
- cardiovascular pathologies;
- blood diseases.
Extraction of milk teeth in the dental office - child preparation and procedure
Only a pediatric dentist can be trusted to remove a baby tooth. This work requires special skills from a specialist. The fact is that milk teeth have thin alveolar walls, and their roots are thinner and longer than permanent ones.
It is also important for the doctor to take into account the presence of molars, the structural features of children's jaws, mixed bite. One wrong movement is enough - and you can damage the rudiments of permanent teeth.
Therefore, a pediatric dentist must be a real professional and be extremely careful. And the child is a difficult, capricious patient and you need to contrive to find an approach to him.
Most important things to do before visiting the dentist
- Prepare your child mentally for going to the dentist. You do not have to do this if you take him for routine check-ups every 3-4 months.
- Check the response to anesthesia, specifically to those drugs that are used for pain relief in your clinic. If your child has an allergy, you will learn about it and can warn the doctor to choose other medicines.
How does a dentist remove baby teeth?
If the root resolves on its own, anesthesia is usually not applied. A special gel is simply applied to the gum. In more serious cases, pain relievers are used. They are injected into the gums with a syringe with a fine needle.
In the most difficult situations, general anesthesia is sometimes administered. Such a need arises if the child has an intolerance to local anesthesia, purulent inflammation, mental disorders.
The milk tooth is removed according to the standard scheme:
- The dentist grabs the crown of the tooth with forceps.
- Moves the instrument along the equator of the tooth and fixes it on it without pressure.
- Carries out luxation and removes the tooth from the hole.
- Examines the well to make sure all roots have been removed and inserts a sterile swab into it.
VIDEO: Removal of a baby tooth at the dentist in 3 minutes
If several teeth were removed at once
For a number of reasons, some babies remove not one or two, but several teeth at the same time. In such cases, parents need to take care of purchasing dentures. They are plates with artificial teeth. If the loss is very serious, the doctor may recommend metal or plastic crowns.
Using dentures or crowns, you will prevent a child's dentition from shifting: molars will erupt where nature intended.
Memo for parents who are going to take their child to the dentist
- Don't tell scary stories or scare your child with dentists. The child will be scared, and you will not force him to go to the dentist even for his favorite chocolate.
- Start taking your baby to the dental office right from the cradle. Do this regularly, then he will get used to doctors and will not be very afraid of them.
- Going to treat your teeth, take your child with you to the office. Let the baby know that the mother is not afraid, and the doctor does not hurt.
- Do not show your child that you are worried about him. Otherwise your excitement will be transmitted to him.
- Stay close to your child when their tooth is removed. At this moment he will need your support, and you never know what can happen in your absence.
Recovery after tooth extraction - important points
Each case is individual, so it is always worth listening to the advice of a specialist (In detail, for each specific case, recommendations are given, of course, by the specialist himself). Still, there are general guidelines that apply to most situations:
- Spitting out the tampon with which the doctor covers the hole is only necessary after 20 minutes, not earlier.
- Remind your baby not to bite on the cheek where the anesthetic was applied. Otherwise, when its effect is over, it will be quite painful.
- The hole formed after tooth extraction will be filled with a blood clot. It will prevent dirt from entering the open wound and will help the gums heal faster. You should not touch the hole or rinse your mouth to get rid of the blood clot. The gums should tighten by themselves.
- It is not recommended to eat within two hours. Sometimes dentists advise eating cold ice cream immediately after tooth extraction, but it's better not to eat anything at all.
- Hot food and dairy products should be excluded from the menu within two days.
- Until the gums are healed, you can only brush your teeth with a soft brush.
- For the next 2 days, the child is not recommended to swim and exercise.
How to independently pull out a baby tooth from a child at home if it has almost fallen out
If a baby's tooth has recently begun to loosen, it is too early to remove it. This slight wobble is absolutely normal and shouldn't be alarming.
5 methods to help a baby pull out a baby tooth You will learn how to pull out a baby's milk tooth in a way that is painless, fun and exciting!
If the child is worried about the discomfort due to the tooth, it is worth going to the dentist. Inflammation, cyst, redness of the gums - these are also reasons to immediately visit the doctor.
In other cases, you just have to wait: when the time comes, the tooth will fall out by itself.
Be patient and try to keep your baby teeth until the molars start cutting - then you don't have to go to an orthodontist.
If it is time for a tooth to fall out, it is literally "hanging by a thread"; in the absence of contraindications, it can be removed at home. If you are confident in your abilities, and the baby is not afraid, follow this algorithm:
- Give your child an apple or carrot. Perhaps the tooth will fall out by itself while it gnaws. Do not give your child breadcrumbs and hard cookies. Such food can injure the gums. If the tooth remains in place, start removing it.
- Make sure you can remove the tooth yourself. If it doesn’t give way, it’s better to seek help from a dentist. Use your fingers to shake the tooth to see if it is completely ready for self-removal.
- Swish the chlorhexidine solution in your child's mouth. Disinfect your hands and nylon thread with the same tool.
- If your child is very afraid of pain, treat his gums with fruit pain relieving gel or spray. These products can be found at the pharmacy.
- Tie a nylon thread around the tooth. Distract the kid with something - and, pulling the thread sharply towards you, pull out the tooth. Do not pull to the sides or too hard. The child will be in pain, and there is a risk of damaging the gums.
- To recover, you need to do the same as after a tooth extraction in a dental office. Put a cotton swab into the formed hole for 20 minutes. For two hours, do not feed the baby, but for the next 2 days, give him soft food at room temperature and control physical activity.
What to do with a lost tooth
There are 3 options:
- Let the crumb leave a tooth under the pillow. At night, a tooth fairy will come for him and exchange him for a coin or some kind of gift that you promised your child.
- You can give a tooth to a mouse. Then a strong and healthy molar will grow in place of the fallen milk tooth.
- If you put a tooth on the window sill, a tooth owl will fly after it. Invite your child to write a note with a desire, because this owl is not simple, but magical.
The first tooth that falls out is a thrilling process, but stay calm. It depends only on you how everything goes for the child. Tooth extraction can be both a nightmare for a kid and an interesting adventure with the participation of fairy-tale characters.
