Summer is here – that time of year when kids are home from school and families are taking vacations. This is a time of year when dental injuries can occur too, so we would like to provide our parents with some summer safety tips regarding pools, water activities, summer sports, and tooth injury.
One thing to think about is how too much swimming time can affect your child’s smile. Spending over six hours a week in a swimming pool may put your child’s teeth at risk for developing dark brown stains on their teeth. Pool water contains chemical additives that directly disturb our pearly whites. These hard, brown deposits are known as swimmers’ calculus. This is easy to remove by dental professionals but may not be managed simply by brushing.
Older kids may be experimenting with scuba diving, perhaps while on vacation. It is a good idea to have your child’s teeth checked before partaking in this activity to make sure the teeth are in good shape. If a diver has a cavity, temporary filling, or gum disease, this could lead to “tooth squeeze.” Tooth squeeze is a pain in the center of the tooth. Divers also report jaw joint pain and gum tissue problems. So be sure to discuss these issues with your dentist too if you are fortunate enough to be partaking in this fun activity.
Summer sports such as soccer, baseball, and even outside play can cause dental injury. These are all activities where mouth guards are not required. However, soccer players are reported to have more mouth injuries than football players. This may be because they seldom wear mouth guards. We would suggest that you get your children a mouth guard when participating in these sports. You can buy them off the shelf. However, if you want one that really fits your child, your dentist can create a custom-made mouth protector. It offers the best protection, fit, and comfort.
If injury does occur and a tooth gets knocked out, contact your pediatric dentist immediately. If the tooth is a baby tooth, the tooth will probably not be saved, but you should contact your dentist any way to be sure that there are no other mouth or tooth injuries. If the injury is to a permanent tooth and your child has no other head injuries involved, contact your dentist immediately and place the knocked out tooth in milk or Hank’s Balanced Salt Solution (most schools have this) and do not rinse it off or handle the root more than you have to. Using a clean gauze or washcloth, hold the tooth into the empty socket until you can get to the dentist. If you cannot hold it in place, put the tooth in milk, saliva, or water. The faster you get to the dentist, the more likely you are to save the tooth.
Our dentists are experts at managing all types of dental and facial trauma. If you have any further questions about this topic, please feel free to contact us and be sure you have our number 586-286-0700 programmed into your phones should you need us in the event of a tooth/jaw injury.
About Pediatric Dentistry and Orthodontic Specialists of Michigan, the offices of Drs. Delaney, Plunkett, Ralstrom, Makowski, Thanasas, Ker, and Associates
Pediatric Dentistry and Orthodontic Specialists of Michigan have specialized in pediatric dentistry and orthodontics since 1968. Our family-friendly and newly renovated office gives patients and families a more comfortable and consistent experience with dentistry from the very beginning. Our pediatric dentists treat children from newborn to 18 years of age while our orthodontists provide care for both children and adults and are proud to be Premier Providers of Invisalign and Invisalign Teen services. The ability to treat all patients with compassion and individuality, including those that may have special needs reaches beyond our facility, which has treatment rooms available for children who require additional privacy and customized care options. We pioneered valued hospital affiliations to allow dental services to be performed at DMC Children’s Hospital and St. John Macomb Hospital, when appropriate or necessary, and our specialists are also proud to be on staff at Henry Ford and Beaumont hospitals.
