The Problem With Extracting Baby Teeth Too Early

Tooth decay is one of the most common diseases in children across the world. Sometimes, parents don’t take a child’s cavities as seriously as they should because they know the tooth will eventually be replaced by a newer, healthier one. Sometimes parents will even assist children in pulling teeth that aren’t ready or won’t visit the dentist for a space maintainer when their child gets a tooth knocked out. What’s the big deal if it isn’t their permanent tooth?

When children have an open space where their teeth should be for too long, a lot of things can go wrong in their mouths. Thankfully, our kids dentist in 78221 can repair baby teeth and adult teeth with restorative dentistry. If the tooth can’t be saved, we can maintain the proper spacing in their mouths until the adult tooth is ready. We want to keep them healthy for as long as possible, so they can enjoy happy smiles for decades to come.

Losing One Tooth Puts Surrounding Teeth at Higher Risk

Your teeth are the same height (or should be) so that pressure can be evenly distributed when you bite down. Have you ever watched someone walk across or lay on a bed of nails without a single nail puncturing them? This is because their weight can be spread evenly across each nail tip. If even one of those nails rose above the others, they’d be nursing a puncture wound, for sure.

The lack of tooth in your child’s mouth means that the force of their bite isn’t being spread out over as many points of pressure. The result? Like the one nail that takes all of a person’s weight, the neighboring teeth are taking more force, losing more enamel, and are at a higher risk of injury.

Your Child Will Be More Likely to Need Orthodontics

The primary teeth are more than just space holders for adult teeth. The baby teeth also set up the foundation for your child’s future smile. Once they lose a baby tooth, if the new tooth isn’t already erupting and won’t be ready to erupt for a while, the teeth on either side of this gap will begin to move closer toward each other.

Not only will this make it more difficult for the adult tooth to erupt, but it could result in overcrowding and alignment issues. The baby teeth point the way for the adult teeth. Letting that pathway get knocked off course can cause long-term orthodontic issues that may need braces to correct.

What to Do if Your Child Loses a Baby Tooth Prematurely

First of all, it may benefit you to know when a baby tooth is ready to be pulled. Don’t encourage or assist in pulling a baby tooth unless it is barely hanging onto the gums without any pushing or prodding. There should be hardly any blood or none at all if the tooth is ready to be pulled.

If your child’s tooth has to be pulled due to tooth decay or injury, we have ways to keep the teeth from crowding into that space while the adult tooth gets ready to erupt. 

Finally, if your child’s baby tooth gets knocked out, it may be possible to put it back in! Follow these steps to preserve a baby tooth before visiting our emergency dentist:

• Hold the tooth by the top, being careful not to touch the roots.
• If the tooth is in good condition, you can clean any debris by placing it in a bowl of lukewarm tap water.
• Place the tooth back into the gums and have your child bite down on a towel or a piece of gauze.
• Encourage them to keep the pressure on while you make your way to us.

You can also store the baby tooth in a sealed bag of your child’s saliva or cold milk while you bring them in.

Visit Harlandale Kids Dentist 78221 to Save Their Baby Teeth

We offer restorative care, preventative and maintenance services, and emergency dental help. Our primary goal is always to protect and conserve your child’s dental health, so they can enjoy a happy, healthy future with their teeth. To schedule an appointment with us, call 210-791-7609 today.