Case Recap:
Your first patient of the day is a 2-year-old girl who tripped and fell while walking, hitting her mouth on the concrete sidewalk. On your examination, her left central incisor tooth appears to be fractured, with a yellow dot visible inside the tooth. The tooth is nontender and nonmobile. The parents don?t have the other part of the tooth and think it fell onto the street. You start to consider: How do you determine what kind of fracture this is and how serious it is? How does management differ between primary teeth versus permanent teeth, and how can you tell if this is a primary tooth or a permanent tooth? Do you need to do anything regarding the missing fragment?
Case Conclusion:
After seeing the 2-year-old girl with the chipped tooth, you realized that, given her age, this was likely primary dentition, which you confirmed with the parents. You could also tell on examination that the upper right central incisor was more of a milky-white color with a smooth edge, which is also consistent with primary dentition. You decided that the management priorities were to prevent further harm to the developing permanent dentition and to confirm that the tooth fragment was truly lost. You were unable to detect any retained foreign bodies on your physical examination, but you decided to obtain radiographic images to confirm. On facial radiography, there appeared to be a small foreign body inside her right upper lip. You repeated your physical examination and were able to extract the small tooth fragment. The girl?s left central incisor appeared to be an uncomplicated crown fracture. The girl was able to drink without difficulty. You did not have dental panoramic radiography available at your institution, so you instructed the parents to follow up with the girl’s dentist for assessment of her permanent dentition. You recommended a soft diet and to clean the tooth with chlorhexidine until the patient was able to see the dentist.
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Last Updated on January 26, 2023
