A tragic Fall – Dr. Shanaz
Joanna had a really bad night yesterday. A trip to bathroom in the middle of the night, ended up with her slipping in the bathroom, and breaking her front two teeth. She also sustained some injuries on her upper and lower lip, but gratefully nothing too serious. But she was in a great deal of pain! And can you imagine her horror when she saw the broken teeth?!
The first thing in the morning she came up to us, in pain, seeking for help. After giving her some painkillers, I got to checking her teeth and any other areas where she might have sustained injury. It’s very important to identify how the trauma was sustained to give us a clue to what to look for at the injured area. Dirty wounds should definitely be cleaned, and usually injury involving sand, gravel, earth picks up more infections.
Joanna was lucky enough to not have injured other areas, so the only complication to deal with were her teeth.
Usually when a tooth is broken or traumatised such as this, there are a few things to watch out for:
- Mobility
- Pulp exposure (red spots in the tooth)
- Loose fractured segments
- Injury to other parts of the mouth or other teeth
All the above would have different treatment plans, so it’s vital to be thorough during the check up.
Joanna had none of these, except INTENSE sensitivity and pain, which is very normal and actually quite a good sign as the body is doing the best it can to keep her front biting and further injuring the tooth. The best for her now would be to take the necessary medication and for me to build the tooth carefully to its natural shape and size.
I explained to her the protocols of when a trauma and fractured tooth occurs. She’ll need to come and see me for multiple reviews after today’s treatment as to ensure that the tooth remains vital and not needing a root canal treatment.
I’ll redo the filling again to ensure she gets a nice finish once we’ve established the vitality of the teeth at the next visits. But not bad eh? At least now, at first glance, you won’t be able to tell that she broke her teeth. And all it took was 1 hour.
Any questions, do email me at shanaz@story.drfauziah.com