Any Mn dentists about?

[sassytheFIRST]

My dd(9) has a rotten baby tooth - it's been that way for a while and we've been advised to leave it in place as it isn't causing her any pain and will help avoid displacement as the adult teeth come through. It's at the top, behind the canine, if that's relevant.

This morning she's come to find me as the tooth has started to fall apart - a big chunk has cracked off and the other side also feels insecure. No pain. I'm a bit bothered that she could end up with just the root embedded and that might cause issues so will get her an appt early next week to get it checked. Do I need to see an emergency dentist today? My instinct is not...

Thanks

I'm not a dentist, but Ds3 had a tooth like this. The dentist was reluctant to remove it for the same reason. In the end it had to be removed though as it started causing pain.

There are no roots as such in milk teeth, so I wouldn't worry about that too much. I would advise leaving it unless it starts causing pain, but if you are concerned, make an appointment to see the dentist.

I've just seen that you're going to make an appointment next week. I would say that's the best thing to do as opposed to an emergency appointment.

Hi I'm a dentist.
You're right in not getting an emergency appointment.
She'll probably just get the remaining tooth removed now part of it is off.
Try to encourage her to use a lot of toothpaste on the surrounding teeth as they will be more exposed to plaque if there's a gap x

Thanks both. I'll be ringing in the morning to get it looked at this week.

Have it checked but don't worry too much about the root. By this stage the permanent tooth will have cause the resorption of most of the milk tooth root (they do have quite big roots initially).
If you have kept of her baby teeth she has already lost you will notice there is no root left on these.
Some children are not keen to loosen their own teeth so the permanent tooth resorbs through the root and the crown of the tooth until only a thin shell of enamel is left. When this happens the teeth just break up while eating and the pieces are gradually lost. Its not unusual for children to start losing these baby molars at 9yrs old.

Saw dentist today who confirmed that it is ok for now. Advised that we monitor it - if it begins to cause pain etc she will extract but otherwise let nature take its course. Thanks again for advice.