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Knowledge centreYour child knocked out a tooth: the first hour
A knock to the head with dizziness, vomiting, any blackout, unusual sleepiness or odd behaviour? Go to hospital emergency first.
If it's a permanent tooth, or you're not sure: hold it by the crown, put it in a cup of milk, then call us straight away and come within the hour. If it's a baby tooth, don't put it back. Press on the bleeding with clean gauze, then call and bring your child in so we can check the permanent tooth underneath. Clinic closed, and the tooth is permanent or you're not sure? Take it in milk to the nearest hospital emergency department.
First question: baby tooth or permanent?
The answer changes what you do: the doctor can often put a permanent tooth back if you get here quickly, but a baby tooth isn't put back.
- Not sure? Don't put it back in: keep it in milk and come in, and the doctor will check which it is.
- By their age: children usually start losing their front baby teeth in their first years at school. So if your child hasn't started school yet, or hasn't lost a front tooth yet, the one that came out is most likely a baby tooth.
- Where it grew in: if it came in where a baby tooth had already fallen out, it's permanent.
If it's a permanent tooth: how to keep it
- 1
Hold it by the crown, not the rootThe crown is the white part you see when they smile. Don't touch or scrub the root.
- 2
Don't wash it with soap, and don't let it dry outIf it's dirty, rinse it briefly and gently in milk. And don't wrap it in a tissue.
- 3
Put it in a cup of milk straight awayNot in your child's mouth, because they could swallow it. No milk nearby? Call us now and we'll tell you what to keep it in. No milk and the clinic's closed? Pick up milk at the first shop on your way, and if you can't find any, don't wait: hold it by the crown and go straight to the nearest hospital emergency department.
- 4
Call us straight away, and come within the hourBring the tooth with you in the milk. The doctor decides whether to put it back, and follow-up visits show whether it heals in place. If you're thinking of putting it back yourself, ask us on the phone first.
If it's a baby tooth
- Don't put it back in. It can harm the permanent tooth forming underneath.
- Press on the bleeding with clean gauze or a clean cloth, steadily and gently until it stops, without lifting it every few seconds to look.
- Bring the tooth with you in a cup of milk if you find it, so the doctor can check it came out whole. Can't find it? Come in anyway: it may have been pushed into the gum.
- Call us straight away, and bring your child in to be checked. The permanent tooth underneath needs to be seen.
The tooth broke or moved instead of coming out
Look for the broken piece, and if you find it, put it in milk and bring it with you. If the tooth has moved or tilted, or you can't find it at all, the same applies. Call straight away and come as soon as you can, even if nothing hurts: a knock can affect the root without it showing, and an examination with an x-ray helps find it.
When hospital comes first, and when to call now
This doesn't wait
Nearest hospital emergency department first, the teeth second: a knock to the head as well as the mouth, with dizziness, vomiting or any loss of consciousness, even for a moment, or unusual sleepiness or behaving oddly. The same for a cough that won't stop after the knock, or if they choked or coughed at the time and you can't find the tooth.
Trouble breathing? Call an ambulance on 911 straight away rather than driving them yourself.
Call now:
- A tooth knocked out, broken, or moved out of place.
- Bleeding that won't stop with pressure.
Or message us on WhatsApp, though calling is faster for a permanent tooth.
Clinic closed, or you can't reach us?
- A permanent tooth knocked out, you're not sure which, or bleeding that won't stop: take the tooth in its cup of milk to the nearest hospital emergency department. Don't wait.
- A permanent tooth that moved out of place or tilted, or bad pain: nearest hospital emergency department.
- A baby tooth that moved or whose bleeding has stopped, a tooth that broke without bleeding, or one you can't find: keep any piece in milk, and call as soon as we open.
Questions people ask
Why don't you put a baby tooth back in?
Because its root sits very close to the permanent tooth underneath. As for the gap, the doctor checks with an examination and an x-ray whether it can stay as it is until the permanent tooth comes in, or needs a space maintainer, a small device that holds the gap open.
What can I give my child for the pain?
A painkiller made for children from the pharmacy, and the pharmacist works out the dose from your child's weight. Don't give an adult medicine or part of an adult tablet on your own, unless the pharmacist or doctor says so, and don't put any tablet on the tooth or gum, because it burns. When you call, tell us what they took and when. More on this: Toothache in children: what to give and what not to.
After the visit, what do we do at home?
What the doctor tells you comes first. Usually: soft food for a few days, gentle brushing with a soft toothbrush, and the follow-up visits the doctor sets, because changes can show weeks or months later. If the tooth turns dark or grey, gets looser, or the pain comes back, call and book a check. If a swelling appears on the gum or cheek, or there's a fever with the pain, call straight away.
Can the knock affect the permanent tooth under the baby tooth?
Sometimes. It depends on your child's age when it happened, how far the permanent tooth has formed, and the kind and force of the knock. If it does, it can show later as a spot, or a change in the permanent tooth's colour, its shape, or the way it comes in. That's why the check after a knock matters, and follow-up helps catch it early.
Pages that go with this one
This is general first-aid guidance for the first hour, not a diagnosis. The doctor decides after seeing your child, and calling is faster than reading.