Mouth injuries are usually caused by a fall or other trauma. The most common sites of mouth injuries in kids are the lips, tongue, and teeth. Often these injuries will heal well on their own. Other mouth injuries will need medical attention.

Signs that your child's mouth injury needs a medical visit:

• Knocked out permanent tooth: if the tooth is clean and it is easy to do so, put it back where it came from.  If it's not possible to get it back in, Hank's balanced salt solution is the best liquid to put the tooth in, followed by cold milk. If these aren't available, placing the tooth in between the cheek and gum is the next best option.  Water is toxic to the tooth but still better than dry storage which is the worst option
• Deep cuts in the mouth: these can fool you, so if you aren't sure, it's best to get that cut looked at
• Cuts in the mouth that don't stop bleeding with direct pressure
• Tooth, gum, or face infections:  signs of infection include pain, redness, swelling, or fever. These are nothing to mess around with. If you're worried about an infection, come see us, we can help!

Mouth injuries can be scary both because of the falls that usually cause them and because they tend to bleed a lot! If you're worried about your child's mouth injury, come see us.  We're happy to help you and your child feel better.