A missing edge or crack
Tell us how much is gone and whether temperature, touch or chewing bothers your child. A fragment found safely should go into milk or water and come with you. Avoid using glue or a file on the tooth at home.
Children’s Dentistry
Children’s Dental Trauma Treatment in Mississauga
Some tooth injuries look minor on the day and change weeks later. For children coming from Mississauga, we assess the injury after a call, treat what is needed now and keep reviewing the tooth as it recovers.
Injuries that unfold over timeBook a non-urgent injury assessment
The tooth looked fine. Three weeks later, it didn’t.
Parents sometimes call us not on the day of a fall but weeks afterwards, when a front tooth has turned greyish or the gum above it looks puffy. Injuries can be quiet at first. On the day itself, though, the first job is checking your child overall: a major knock to the head or face, any struggle to breathe or swallow, or bleeding that won’t settle calls for emergency medical care.
Then contact a dental office and say when and how the injury happened, even if it was a while ago. An adult tooth knocked out completely is time-critical and needs immediate attention; a baby tooth that comes out is not to be replanted. Call to ask about our availability, and if urgent care can’t be arranged here, see another emergency dental provider.
Because problems can appear late, treatment usually includes a plan for watching the tooth. The dentist examines the injured tooth along with its gum, bone and how mature its root is, and explains what happens now and what is reviewed later. Ask which changes to look out for between appointments.
Early clues worth reporting
Small signs can point to a bigger injury.
The cause and timing of the knock, plus any symptoms since, help the dentist decide what to examine. Please don’t test the tooth by pushing on it or getting your child to bite hard.
A change in position or bite
Describe a tooth that looks longer, shorter, angled or out of line, or a bite your child says feels strange. These signs need timely assessment. Don’t reposition the tooth yourself or assume a baby tooth is just loosening naturally.
Soft-tissue damage or a lost tooth
Report cuts, swelling, bleeding and any tooth or fragment that could not be found. Share other symptoms since the accident, including any possible head injury. This wider view helps the clinician decide on the examination and whether medical care is needed as well.
Immediate first aid and dental care are needed for a permanent tooth that has been knocked out. Hold it by the crown, not the root, and keep it in milk if replanting is not safe. A young child must not hold the tooth inside their cheek.
Why follow-up is part of treatment
What you see today is not the whole story.
Injury to a tooth can involve its crown, its root, the living pulp inside and the structures that support it. Some of that damage only becomes apparent with time. A repair that looks good does not show whether the pulp and supporting tissues are healing.
Your child’s stage of development also shapes what happens next. A baby tooth and a young adult tooth with an unfinished root are treated as different situations. Ask which tooth is affected, what has been confirmed and what the dentist is still watching for.
Patient information: IADT and AAPD — fractures and luxations of permanent teeth
Care based on what was found
Monitoring, repair, stabilization and other care are all possibilities. Ask what each step is meant to accomplish. A splint may hold the tooth steady while the pulp still needs observing, for example.
A baseline for spotting change
First-visit records let later reviews pick up changes. Mention any earlier injury in the same area. Ask what the dentist will compare at follow-up and what would prompt more testing or treatment.
Frankness about what can’t be predicted
Some outcomes are not knowable early on. Ask which signs are encouraging and which complications are on the watch list. Useful follow-up advice is better than being told the tooth won’t ever need care.
How we work through an injury
Record, examine, treat and review
The order and urgency depend on the injury. Please phone the clinic about a recent knock rather than relying on a routine online request.
Describe the event
Tell us when and where it happened, what your child struck, what first aid was done and whether they had medical care. Mention lost teeth or pieces and bite changes. Bring health details and a note of medicines given.
Examine the injured area
The dentist looks at the teeth and tissues and discusses imaging or tests that might help. Teeth beside the obvious one may also need checking. Ask what is clear today and which results may need rechecking as healing continues.
Provide the care that is needed
Your child might need a repair, a splint, treatment of the pulp, a watching period or something else. Tell us how they let you know something hurts. Should the dentist recommend a referral, find out the reason and how soon it should happen.
Set reviews and home guidance
Confirm what was done and any restrictions on eating, cleaning or activity. Ask when to return and which symptoms mean calling earlier. Reviews can continue long after the tooth looks normal.
Watching the tooth between visits
Your notes at home help the next review.
Instructions are tailored to the injury and the treatment provided. A small repair may need different care from a displaced, splinted or replanted adult tooth.
Keep to the food and hygiene plan
Ask which foods and biting to avoid and for how long. Clean the area with the technique you were shown. If soreness or a splint makes that difficult, call for help instead of letting cleaning slip.
Write down changes as they happen
Note the date if pain increases, swelling appears, a bump forms on the gum, the bite changes or the tooth darkens, and call the clinic. Colour alone doesn’t determine what’s happening; it has to be weighed with symptoms, examination and injury type.
Ask about sport and protection
Check when your child can resume their usual activities and whether a mouthguard is suitable. An existing guard should be checked for fit after treatment. Protection reduces risk but doesn’t guarantee against another injury.
Patient information: IADT — broken teeth and preserving a fragment
Questions about delayed changes(905) 876-4488
When a healed-looking tooth still needs attention
Bring questions about what has changed and what to watch. A first appointment sets a starting point rather than answering every long-term question.
The injury happened a few weeks ago. Is it too late to have the tooth checked?
No. It is still worth calling and describing what happened and what has changed since. Some signs, such as colour change or gum swelling, appear later. The dentist can assess the tooth now and plan follow-up.
What does a small pimple on the gum above an injured tooth mean?
A bump on the gum near an injured tooth should be reported to the clinic so it can be examined. It can have different causes, and the dentist will assess it together with the tooth, symptoms and history.
My child’s injured tooth has gone darker. Does that mean it has died?
Colour by itself does not tell you that. The change needs assessment along with any symptoms and examination findings, and its meaning varies with the tooth and injury. Report it rather than assuming the worst or ignoring it.
Why does the dentist repeat tests on the same tooth at each review?
An injured young tooth can respond differently as it recovers, so one early result may not give the full answer. Repeating tests over time helps the dentist see a pattern alongside the history and other records.
Could a problem show up months after the tooth was repaired?
Yes, some complications develop later and may not cause pain at first. That is why reviews continue even when the repair looks good. Ask what signs to watch for and when your next check is due.
Is it practical to keep reviews here if we live in Mississauga?
Ask for the planned review dates at the first visit so you can fit them into school and work schedules. Keeping each review matters even when things look fine. If a new symptom appears, phone first to decide how soon your child should be seen.
Tooth injury care for Mississauga children
Let’s keep an eye on that tooth together.
Call our Bronte Street practice after your child injures a tooth, or if an older injury has started to change, so we can talk about availability and next steps. For a recent urgent injury, use an available emergency dental provider if we can’t see you.
Knocked-out adult teeth need immediate care. Serious head injury, breathing or swallowing difficulty, or uncontrolled heavy bleeding needs emergency medical attention.
Visit Milton Dental ClinicUnit 1, 342 Bronte St. S, Milton, ON L9T 5B7Get directions
Clinic hours
- Monday–Thursday
- 11am–7pm
- Friday–Sunday
- By appointment only
Areas we serve
- Milton
- Oakville
- Mississauga
- Georgetown
- Halton Hills
- Acton
- Campbellville
- Brampton
- Burlington
- Puslinch
- Rockwood
- Erin
- Caledon
- Etobicoke
- Old Milton
- Bronte Meadows
- Timberlea
- Dorset Park
- Dempsey
- Clarke
- Beaty
- Coates
- Harrison
- Scott
- Willmott
- Ford
- Bowes
- Cobden
- Walker
- Mountain View
- Milton Heights
- Hawthorne Village
- Valley View
- Fallingbrook
- Nassagaweya
- Trafalgar
- Esquesing
- Nelson
- Brookville
- Moffat
- Glen Williams
- Norval
- Limehouse
- Stewarttown
- Ashgrove
- Hornby
- Silver Creek
- Speyside
- Scotch Block
- North Oakville
- River Oaks
- Glen Abbey
- West Oak Trails
- Palermo
- Bronte Creek
- College Park
- Joshua Creek
- Uptown Core
- Preserve
- Iroquois Ridge
- Lisgar
- Meadowvale
- Meadowvale Village
- Churchill Meadows
- Erin Mills
- Central Erin Mills
- Streetsville
- East Credit
- Creditview
- Heartland
- Sheridan
- Mount Pleasant
- Credit Valley
- Huttonville
- Churchville
- Springbrook
- Northwest Brampton
- Bram West
- Fletcher's Meadow
- Fletcher's Creek South
- Alton Village
- Orchard
- Millcroft
- Headon Forest
- Tansley
- Brant Hills
- Tyandaga
- Kilbride
- Lowville
- Aberfoyle
- Morriston
- Arkell
- Hillsburgh
- Freelton
- Carlisle
- Waterdown
- Flamborough
- Mountsberg
