Post-Op & Emergencies

1. It is recommended that your child wait for 20 to 30 minutes prior to eating or drinking after a dental cleaning or prophylaxis. This allows the tooth surfaces to fully absorb the fluoride delivered in the cleaning process.
2. With Fluoride varnishes, your child can eat and drink right away. The setting time for these materials is very short. However, please do not brush the teeth for six hours.

1. Although your child’s mouth is not numb, we still recommend waiting for any dental materials we use to fully set. The composite or tooth-colored fillings harden by exposing them to a dental light as they are placed. However, it’s best to give the material a chance to “rest” for 30 minutes to one hour before your child chews.
2. Drinking of liquids right away is fine if they are not extremely cold or hot (this can cause severe temperature changes within the filling)
3. Brush and floss your child’s teeth normally when you get home.
4. It is advisable to help your child avoid sticky and chewy candies like Fruit Roll Ups and caramels to protect placed sealants (protective materials applied to the deep grooves of molars) and composite or tooth-colored fillings.

1. Dental anesthetics numb not only your child’s tooth but the surrounding gums, tongue and lips as well.
2. Usually, treatment in the lower jaw causes a more severe numbness. Due to the way the anesthetic is administered, a wider area can be affected. This may include the tongue. Anesthesia of the upper teeth is more local but can include the cheeks and upper lip.
3. Please watch your child carefully for at least two hours. Do not allow them to eat for the duration of that time. Some children do not understand the effects of local anesthesia and may chew, scratch or suck the numb area. This can cause serious damage to the tissues which will be very painful once the anesthetic wears off.
4. You can place a piece of folded gauze in your child’s mouth to bite on. This will help keep their mouth injury free.
5. There may be mild soreness associated with the treatment. You may give children’s Tylenol or Motrin according to the package directions if necessary. Please contact our office if sever pain persists.

1. The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD) recognizes this technique as a safe and effective technique to reduce anxiety, produce analgesia and enhance effective communication with a child during dental procedures.
2. Nitrous oxide is quickly exhaled from your child’s lungs soon after it is stopped. Pure oxygen is given at the end of the treatment to aid in this matter.
3. Although we don’t allow the kids to sit up until they have had ample amounts of oxygen, it’s important to watch your child as you leave the treatment room. They may be a little dizzy for a couple of minutes.
4. If your child was given a local anesthetic during the course of treatment, please do not allow eating for the first two hours after treatment since the lips and mouth are still numb. Be careful that your child does not chew, suck or bite cheeks and lips.
5. There may be mild soreness associated with the treatment. You may give children’s Tylenol or Motrin according to the package directions if necessary. Please contact our office if severe pain persists.
6. Praise your child to reinforce a positive memory of the dental visit.

1. The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD) recognizes moderate sedation as a procedure used to calm anxious patients during dental treatment. It is used together with nitrous oxide/oxygen to further help your child have a positive dental experience.
2. Although the effects of nitrous oxide are readily reversed (please refer to the above paragraph), the oral sedative’s effects last longer. Your child may be sleepy or groggy after the treatment session. Please allow for an observed nap. A side position is recommended and you might want to place a towel under your child’s head in the case of drooling.
3. If your child is awake, they may be fussy. This is normal after a longer treatment session.
4. If your child was given a local anesthetic during the course of treatment, please do not allow eating for the first two hours after treatment since the lips and mouth are still numb. Be careful that your child does not chew, suck or bite cheeks and lips.
5. Encourage your child to drink plenty of clear liquids and maintain a soft diet for the day of treatment.
6. Children’s Tylenol may be given for any soreness or discomfort following the dental treatment (please follow dosage guidelines carefully). Please contact our office if severe pain persists.
7. Continue with normal oral hygiene but please be gentle around extraction sites and crown margins the day of placement.
8. Praise your child to reinforce a positive memory of the dental visit!

1. The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry supports the use of deep sedation or general anesthesia in pediatric dentistry when appropriately selected and administered by a trained anesthesiologist who carefully monitors your child throughout the session.
2. After deep sedation, your child may be sleepy and want to nap. Close observation is necessary. You may awaken your child periodically until fully awake. A side position is recommended and you might want to place a towel under your child’s head in the case of drooling.
3. Children who have undergone deep sedation should remain indoors and refrain from activities for 24 hours.
4. Numbness due to the use of local anesthetics takes about two hours to wear off. Although your child may be sleepy during this time, please be careful that no chewing, sucking or biting of cheeks and lips occurs.
5. If your child becomes nauseous or throws up, allow him/her to rest and sip clear liquids. The feeling should stop on its own.
6. Please maintain a soft diet for two days.
7. Children’s Tylenol may be given for any soreness or discomfort following the dental treatment (please follow dosage guidelines carefully). Please contact our office if severe pain persists.
8. Continue with normal oral hygiene but please be gentle around extraction sites and crown margins the day of placement.
9. Praise your child to reinforce a positive memory of the dental visit.

1. Bleeding from extraction sites is normal at the time of treatment. If your child does not suffer from a bleeding disorder, a clot will form in the extraction site in about 10 minutes.
2. Due to saliva, minor oozing from the extraction site may seem like a lot of blood. Children also tend to continue to spit because of the uncomfortable taste of blood so it may appear like the area is still bleeding. If you are concerned, please have your child bite firmly on a folded piece of clean gauze for about 15 minutes, this should stop any oozing of blood from the site. If bleeding continues, keep your child biting on the gauze for 30 minutes. Gushing blood that does not stop or bleeding that continues for several hours, should be reported to our office.
3. Please make sure that there are no irritants to the extraction site. Drinking from a straw, eating hard foods or your child’s fingers in the area can act as irritants. The formed clot may be dislodged and bleeding can occur again. If this happens, have your child bite firmly on a folded piece of gauze. Doing so should stop the problem promptly.
4. You may give children’s Tylenol or Motrin for pain. Please follow the dosage instructions on the package carefully.
5. Help your child maintain a soft diet for two days. This can include: mashed potatoes, soup, noodles, puddings and bananas. Carbonated drinks and straws (that can irritate the extraction site) should be avoided the day of treatment.
6. Avoid brushing the extraction site for a couple days. The rest of the mouth should be cleansed well to avoid bacterial buildup.

Please call the office with any questions or concerns you may have. Thank you for your cooperation.

Dental accidents occur when least expected. To help avoid confusion, it is best to be familiar with your child’s health history and vaccinations. Tetanus vaccinations are sometimes needed in certain cases of trauma (if they have not been given previously).

If an accident occurs, please refer to this quick list:

1. If your child is unconscious, please find help and call 911 immediately.
2. Check your child and try to find out what happened and what was harmed.
3. Apply pressure with clean towels or gauze to bleeding sites. Cold compresses also help.
4. Broken Tooth: An evaluation is necessary to determine if the fracture caused an exposure to the tooth’s nerve. This requires immediate attention. If the broken tooth is a permanent tooth, try to find and save the broken piece. This is very important because it can be reattached.
5. Dislodged Tooth: If your child has dislodged a tooth from its place but not knocked out, apply gauze to bleeding areas and call our office immediately. We will evaluate the injury and discuss the proper course of treatment with you. Permanent teeth will require repositioning/stabilizing promptly.
6. Knocked Out Permanent Tooth:Try to find the tooth.Handle the tooth only by the crown (the portion you would normally see in the mouth) and not the pointed root. Be careful not to scrape the root surface because the tissues that cover it are what help the tooth survive the injury.Your child can rinse with water. If the tooth is dirty, you can rinse it in water briefly. The best way to do this is to use a small container with water in it. If a sink is used, please place the drain stopper first.The tooth must be kept moist. The best way to preserve the tooth is to reinsert it in its socket even if you are unable to seat it in all the way. Have your child bite on a folded piece of gauze to hold the tooth in place. The next best option is to store the tooth in a special solution created to preserve it. This solution is found in containers called “Save A Tooth” (http://www.save-a-tooth.com) and should be available at schools who participate in sports. If you cannot reinsert the tooth, and no preservative pack is found, place it in milk. The final option is saliva. If the patient is old enough, the tooth may be held inside the mouth by the cheek.The child must be seen immediately to stabilize the tooth. Time is a critical factor in the success of treatment.
7. Knocked Out Baby Tooth: Try to find the tooth. Clean your child’s mouth with a soft wet cloth. Biting on a piece of gauze will help stop the bleeding. It is important to have your child examined to determine if the whole tooth fell out or if only part of it did. We will need to evaluate possible injury to the underlying permanent teeth. Knocked out baby teeth are usually not replanted because of the potential for subsequent damage to developing permanent teeth.

If your child is complaining of pain in a certain area of the mouth, try to locate where the pain is. Most children are able to point to the pain source. The source is not always a tooth. Please keep in mind that your child could have bitten the cheek, tongue or lips. Even if the injury went unnoticed at the time it occurred, it can still be painful while the site is healing. Sometimes a canker sore (white spot) can be seen in the area where the injury occurred. Canker sores can also occur spontaneously and may be quite painful. These injuries are usually self-limiting but it is important to have your child evaluated to rule out other possibilities such as dental abscesses or systemic diseases.

If your child is pointing to a certain tooth that is causing pain, clean the area thoroughly with warm water. You can gently use dental floss to remove food debris. A cavity could be the cause. Sometimes, present cavities may not be visible except on a dental x-ray. Another possibility is a problem under an existing filling. You may give your child children’s Tylenol or Motrin according to the package directions. However, a comprehensive examination will be required to properly evaluate the situation.

Bleeding usually occurs after a baby tooth falls out. Minor bleeding stops within a couple of minutes. If it continues, have your child bite firmly on a clean piece of gauze for 15 minutes. The pressure usually stops the blood. This process can be repeated with new gauze every 15 minutes. Please contact our office if you feel that the bleeding has gone on for longer than normal.

If a broken appliance can be removed easily, please remove it. If it cannot be taken out, cover the sharp or protruding portion with cotton balls, gauze or soft chewing gum (sugarless is best). Please schedule an appointment. Although we recommend you inform us immediately if an existing space maintainer becomes loose, this situation is not considered a dental emergency.