Knocked-Out Tooth, Emergency Care in Stockton, CA

An avulsed tooth, one knocked clean out of its socket, is among the few dental situations where what you do in the first few minutes genuinely determines whether the tooth survives.

Call us immediately at (209) 951-3436.

What to do right now

1. Find the tooth and pick it up by the crown, not the root. The crown is the part that is normally visible in the mouth.
2. Rinse the tooth. Do not scrub it and do not remove any tissue attached to it.
3. Place it back into the socket as quickly as possible.
4. If that is not possible, place the tooth in a special dental solution available at pharmacies, or in milk.
5. Call the office and come in immediately.

The purpose of every step is the same: keeping the inner mechanisms of the tooth moist and alive while emergency dental treatment is sought. A tooth that dries out cannot be replanted successfully.

Why milk, and not water

Milk is close enough to the body’s own fluid balance to keep the cells on the root surface alive. Plain water is not. It damages those cells relatively quickly.

If you have neither milk nor a dental preservation solution, bring the tooth in whatever keeps it from drying out and call us on the way. Do not hold a tooth in the mouth of a child or anyone who might swallow it.

What we do when you arrive

The tooth is affixed in its socket using a special splint, which holds it in position while the surrounding ligament reattaches. Root canal therapy is then performed to save the tooth, since the blood supply to the pulp is severed when a tooth is avulsed.

Follow-up matters

A replanted tooth is monitored over the following months rather than treated once and forgotten. Healing is checked, and the splint is removed when the ligament has reattached.

If the tooth cannot be saved

Not every avulsed tooth can be replanted, particularly when time has passed or the root is damaged. In that case the gap is restored, usually with a dental implant, which replaces the root as well as the visible tooth, or with a bridge.

Baby teeth are different

A knocked-out primary tooth is generally not replanted, because doing so can damage the developing permanent tooth beneath it. It still warrants a prompt call. See pediatric dentistry, but the treatment is not the same as for an adult tooth.

Preventing the next one

Mouthguards for contact sports prevent a large share of avulsed teeth, particularly in children and teenagers. If your family plays sport, raise it at your next routine visit. The same impressions used for a night guard can produce a sports guard that actually fits.

We see families from across Stockton and the surrounding communities and are currently accepting new patients. If you are not already a patient here, call and tell us what has happened, request an appointment online only for what is not urgent.

Call (209) 951-3436. Our contact page has directions if you are coming straight in. Further reading: rapid response for a knocked-out tooth.