Tooth Trauma

What is Dental Trauma?

Dental trauma is a physical injury to your gums, teeth, and the soft tissue of your mouth which includes the tongue and lips, as well as the alveolar bone. This is the bone that holds the tooth socket.

Common Types of Dental Trauma

Dental Injuries

Dental injuries are those that occur right on your tooth itself. While a dental injury can look a little different for everyone, we have compiled a list of how they are categorized and treated by a dentist in order to prepare you or your loved one for what to expect from this injury.

Enamel Infraction – This is when there is a very small crack in the enamel (the outside layer of the tooth) which, while it is still an injury, tends to be easily treated by a dentist. They will etch and seal the crack with resin in order to prevent discoloration of the cracked tooth.

Enamel fracture – This is a small chip of enamel on the tooth. In the event that tooth fragments can be salvaged, a dentist will bond these back together. Otherwise, they can still restore the tooth with composite resin.

Enamel-dentine fracture – A slightly more advanced chip that extends to the dentin as well (the structure directly underneath the enamel that provides its support). As with an enamel fracture, these can be restored with the tooth fragments (if available) or with resin. However, in the case that enough dentine is lost too close to the pulp of the tooth, the dentist will need to place calcium hydroxide over the injury, and cover it with a filling.

Periodontal injuries

Periodontal injuries are those that occur on the soft tissue in and around the teeth, though they can also overlap with dental injuries.

Concussion – A tooth concussion is generally when a tooth (or several teeth) have been damaged without being dislodged from the gums. Instead, the teeth will simply be tender. The dentist will monitor the concussion for symptoms over several appointments to make sure no further treatment is necessary.

Subluxation – A tooth that has withstood trauma and is mobile but not dislodged from the gums. This means that the tooth is wiggling loose within the socket. In addition, there may be bleeding from around the gums of the affected tooth as well. A dentist will most likely place a splint in order to stabilize the tooth, and then will perform follow-up exams to make sure it has not become loose.

Lateral luxation – A fracture to the alveolar bone and a separation from the periodontal ligament–which connects your tooth to the alveolar bone–causes the tooth to appear to be displaced in either a forward or backward position along the gum line. While this tooth may not be loose, it is misaligned. Your dentist will realign it and place a flexible splint that will remain in for about 4 weeks. After that, you will have check-ups about every 2 weeks after the treatment to make sure there were no complications and the injury has healed.

Symptoms of dental trauma?

Symptoms of dental trauma depend on the type of injury that has occurred, but can include:

What causes dental injuries?

The most common causes of dental trauma (injury) include:

How is dental trauma treated?

There are a number of different procedures that dentists can use to treat traumatic dental injuries, but the treatment that is right for you will depend on what kind of injury you have.

Some common dental trauma treatments include:

How long does it take for dental trauma to heal?

The length of time that dental trauma takes to heal will depend on the type of injury that was sustained. Minor traumas, like those to soft tissue, may heal in less than a week. Tooth traumas will take about four to six weeks to heal, though if the damage was extended to the tooth pulp, it may take several months for a complete recovery.

Dental trauma can be both mild and severe, and can affect your teeth, gums, tongue, lips, jaws or other areas of your mouth. Even if you do not experience pain, it is a good idea to call a dentist any time you have sustained a dental injury. Quick treatment will give you the best chance at saving natural teeth and restoring your oral health.