How to Stop the Bleeding After You Pull out a Loose Tooth
Let nature take its course., Expect a little blood ., Apply clean, damp cotton gauze for fifteen minutes., Keep your child’s head elevated, with her face tilted slightly down., Don’t keep rinsing the child’s mouth out., Contact your child’s dentist...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Let nature take its course.
When a removed baby tooth does cause more than a minor amount of bleeding, that is usually a sign that it was removed unnecessarily early.
Allowing the tooth to loosen naturally to the point where it falls out with only the slightest intervention is almost always the recommended and most painless (and bloodless) method.Instead of grabbing the floss and yanking the tooth out like your father may have done, encourage your child to wiggle the tooth free by himself.
The tongue is the best tool for the job, and a gentle rocking motion will typically do the trick eventually.
If you need to help your child with the task, pinch the tooth between your thumb and first finger with a cotton gauze pad covering the tooth and rock back and forth gently.
If the tooth offers any resistance, it is not ready for removal.
If concerned about a loose tooth that won’t seem to fall out, consult your child’s dentist. -
Step 2: Expect a little blood .
Some baby teeth will fall out without any bleeding, but a small amount is normal.
Remember that a few drops of blood mixed with mouth saliva can give the appearance of significant bleeding, so prepare your child (and don’t overreact yourself) if you see some evidence of blood in her mouth.
A quick rinse and spit with cool water immediately after the tooth is removed can help clear the mouth of blood, but don’t continue with any rinsing after that.
You want to help a clot form, not wash it away. , If the bleeding is minor, as is usually the case with a loose baby tooth, no intervention is likely necessary.
If, however, there is still bleeding after about a minute or so, use gauze to staunch the blood flow and facilitate clotting.
Wad up one or a few clean gauze pads that you have dampened with clean water, which will help prevent blood from sticking to it.
Have your child bite down on the pad and keep biting down for fifteen minutes.Instruct your child not to release pressure on the pad or move it around.
Have him bite down and keep biting down.
It may not be an easy sell for you, but remind your kid of the reward to come from the Tooth Fairy.
You may have to hold the gauze in place for a small child, especially if you are concerned he may swallow the pad.
Check after fifteen minutes.
If the bleeding has not stopped, place a new gauze pad as before and contact your child’s dentist., If you need to use gauze to stop the bleeding, keeping the head elevated utilizes gravity to limit blood flow to the area, while tilting the head forward prevents blood (or the gauze pad) from going into the throat.Swallowing blood can cause nausea.
This is also why you should tilt your head forward when you have a nosebleed. , Using lukewarm, salted water as a rinse is a commonly-claimed remedy to stop bleeding from a lost tooth.
However, if done while the clot is forming or newly formed, it is likely to dissolve or dislodge the clot and restart the bleeding.
Don’t use hydrogen peroxide or alcohol-based rinses either.
These can also dissolve or dislodge clots.Hot drinks and foods can also restart bleeding, so skip the soup until the next day.
Drinking cold water is the best way to hydrate after a lost tooth for kids and adults.
You can begin rinsing with tepid water and salt (about one teaspoon per cup of water) the day after the tooth removal to help keep the area clean.
Make sure the child can and will spit out the salt water, though., This is worth reiterating, because a lost baby tooth should not under normal circumstances cause bleeding to such a degree.Continued bleeding may be a sign that a broken-off piece of the tooth remains, that some sort of damage has occurred in the area, or that your child has a medical condition that makes excessive bleeding a problem.
Play it safe and contact a professional.
That said, a little bit of oozing from the lost tooth site or a bit of pink tint to your child’s saliva does not indicate active bleeding.
If blood is not pooling or dripping from the area, it is generally safe to wait it out. -
Step 3: Apply clean
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Step 4: damp cotton gauze for fifteen minutes.
-
Step 5: Keep your child’s head elevated
-
Step 6: with her face tilted slightly down.
-
Step 7: Don’t keep rinsing the child’s mouth out.
-
Step 8: Contact your child’s dentist if active bleeding continues beyond fifteen minutes.
Detailed Guide
When a removed baby tooth does cause more than a minor amount of bleeding, that is usually a sign that it was removed unnecessarily early.
Allowing the tooth to loosen naturally to the point where it falls out with only the slightest intervention is almost always the recommended and most painless (and bloodless) method.Instead of grabbing the floss and yanking the tooth out like your father may have done, encourage your child to wiggle the tooth free by himself.
The tongue is the best tool for the job, and a gentle rocking motion will typically do the trick eventually.
If you need to help your child with the task, pinch the tooth between your thumb and first finger with a cotton gauze pad covering the tooth and rock back and forth gently.
If the tooth offers any resistance, it is not ready for removal.
If concerned about a loose tooth that won’t seem to fall out, consult your child’s dentist.
Some baby teeth will fall out without any bleeding, but a small amount is normal.
Remember that a few drops of blood mixed with mouth saliva can give the appearance of significant bleeding, so prepare your child (and don’t overreact yourself) if you see some evidence of blood in her mouth.
A quick rinse and spit with cool water immediately after the tooth is removed can help clear the mouth of blood, but don’t continue with any rinsing after that.
You want to help a clot form, not wash it away. , If the bleeding is minor, as is usually the case with a loose baby tooth, no intervention is likely necessary.
If, however, there is still bleeding after about a minute or so, use gauze to staunch the blood flow and facilitate clotting.
Wad up one or a few clean gauze pads that you have dampened with clean water, which will help prevent blood from sticking to it.
Have your child bite down on the pad and keep biting down for fifteen minutes.Instruct your child not to release pressure on the pad or move it around.
Have him bite down and keep biting down.
It may not be an easy sell for you, but remind your kid of the reward to come from the Tooth Fairy.
You may have to hold the gauze in place for a small child, especially if you are concerned he may swallow the pad.
Check after fifteen minutes.
If the bleeding has not stopped, place a new gauze pad as before and contact your child’s dentist., If you need to use gauze to stop the bleeding, keeping the head elevated utilizes gravity to limit blood flow to the area, while tilting the head forward prevents blood (or the gauze pad) from going into the throat.Swallowing blood can cause nausea.
This is also why you should tilt your head forward when you have a nosebleed. , Using lukewarm, salted water as a rinse is a commonly-claimed remedy to stop bleeding from a lost tooth.
However, if done while the clot is forming or newly formed, it is likely to dissolve or dislodge the clot and restart the bleeding.
Don’t use hydrogen peroxide or alcohol-based rinses either.
These can also dissolve or dislodge clots.Hot drinks and foods can also restart bleeding, so skip the soup until the next day.
Drinking cold water is the best way to hydrate after a lost tooth for kids and adults.
You can begin rinsing with tepid water and salt (about one teaspoon per cup of water) the day after the tooth removal to help keep the area clean.
Make sure the child can and will spit out the salt water, though., This is worth reiterating, because a lost baby tooth should not under normal circumstances cause bleeding to such a degree.Continued bleeding may be a sign that a broken-off piece of the tooth remains, that some sort of damage has occurred in the area, or that your child has a medical condition that makes excessive bleeding a problem.
Play it safe and contact a professional.
That said, a little bit of oozing from the lost tooth site or a bit of pink tint to your child’s saliva does not indicate active bleeding.
If blood is not pooling or dripping from the area, it is generally safe to wait it out.
About the Author
Patrick Gonzalez
Enthusiastic about teaching pet care techniques through clear, step-by-step guides.
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