It’s almost St. Patrick’s Day! That means it’s time to grab that green shirt out of the closet and celebrate. Whether you’re just enjoying a minty milkshake or partaking in a few green beers, it’s important to remember your dental health.
St. Patty’s is a fun time, but you might not know it’s a dangerous day for your teeth! Following St. Patrick’s Day, dentists see an unusual spike in knocked-out teeth. If you lose a tooth in an accident this year, make sure you know what to do.
Why Do Dentist Visits Spike After St. Patrick’s Day?
The theory behind why so many people lose teeth on St. Patrick’s Day is that some people celebrate a little too hard. After one too many green beers, brawls are more likely to happen. Punches start flying, and pow—a tooth is knocked out!
This spike in dental emergency visits usually involves more male patients, but some women have also lost teeth after St. Patty’s! And it’s not just Texas—this happens across the country.
What To Do If Your Tooth Is Knocked Out?
St. Patrick’s Day fights may lead to more lost teeth, but they aren’t the only reason you might have a tooth knocked out. You might have gotten hit in the face playing sports or tripped and fell face-first into the sidewalk.
If you find yourself with a knocked-out tooth, you may be able to protect your dental health and save your tooth if you act quickly enough!
- • Find Your Tooth — The first thing you’ll need to do is find the tooth. If you can’t find it, you may have swallowed it; you’ll need an x-ray to find out.
- • Pick it Up Properly — It’s essential to pick up your tooth by the crown, aka the biting surface. Do not grab it by the root; this may cause more damage to the tooth.
- • Clean the Tooth — Use milk to rinse off the tooth. Do not use any soaps, chemicals, or cleaning cloths to clean the tooth. If milk is not available, clean water will do the trick.
- • Put the Tooth Back — If you can put the tooth back into the socket it fell out of, gently push it back in. This will keep your tooth safe on your way to the dentist. Do not put a baby tooth back in the socket—this only applies to adult teeth.
- • Keep it Moist — If you’re not able to put the tooth back in the socket, you’ll want to keep the tooth moist. The best way is to keep it in your cheek. But if that’s not possible, keeping your tooth in a glass of milk will work too.
- • Call Your Dentist — Call your dentist and let them know you have a dental emergency! Tell them what happened and what you’ve done with the tooth, and your dental care team will take it from there.
St. Patrick’s Party Over? Fix or Replace a Knocked Out Tooth at Heroes Dental!
Sometimes our Heroes Dental team will be able to fix your knocked-out tooth, but sometimes the tooth is too damaged by the time you get to the office. Losing a tooth as an adult can be frustrating, but you have some options to replace missing teeth!
Dental implants and bridges are a great way to save your shiny smile after an oral accident! Don’t think that it’s too late to fix your tooth. Let our emergency dental team help you show off your pearly whites again by scheduling an appointment today!