Approximately 50% of kids experience some type of tooth injury during childhood. The school playground tends to be a hotspot for injury to occur. As parents, we want to protect our children from experiencing a tooth injury on the playground. We also need to know what to do if our children do injure a tooth.
Help To Prevent Playground Tooth Injury
The parents of school aged children should discuss the importance of playground safety and following the rules on the playground. Unfortunately, accidents do happen, but here are some ways to help prevent them:
- Observe the Playground Facility. Make sure there are no rusted, loose, or broken pieces of playground equipment as these frequently result in injury.
- Age Appropriate Equipment. The equipment that your children are playing on should be age appropriate. Younger children climbing too high, jumping too far, and running too quickly are the most likely to injure themselves.
- Know the Weather Forecast. Rain, snow, and ice can make things slippery and more likely to cause injury.
- Check Your Child’s Clothing. Tuck in those shirts and tie those shoes! Loose clothing is often the cause of falls because it catches easily on things.
- Children Involved in Sports Should Wear Mouthguards. These are a great option for protecting your child’s teeth during game time. Mouthguards can prevent chips, fractures, or knockouts of teeth, as well as protect the soft tissues of the mouth.
What To Do If There Is A Tooth Injury
If a tooth is knocked out or chipped, please contact your child’s dentist immediately. Chipped or lost teeth can result in infection if not treated properly. Depending on your child’s unique situation, Wake Pediatric Dentistry can best advise you on the proper steps to take to ensure a positive outcome for your child’s tooth. Whether the tooth is lost or chipped, try to save the tooth or tooth fragment that has been chipped off and take it with you to the dentist.
Wake Pediatric Dentistry cares about your child’s safety and dental health. Injuring or losing a tooth can be traumatic for some children. As your trusted dental practice, we want to help parents know how to prevent dental trauma and protect their children’s teeth from injury. Accidents do happen. When they do, we’ll be right here to provide the best and most effective care for your child! Call Wake Pediatric Dentistry today (919) 719-1780.