Should I Call Dentist?

Updated on October 30, 2010
C.S. asks from Nashua, NH
12 answers

My daughter has an adult tooth growing in back of her baby tooth. The baby tooth isn't loose at all. I'm wondering if I should just leave it alone and let it get pushed out naturally or if I should call the dentist and have her take a look at it? Has this happened to your little one? What did you do?
Thank you.

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So What Happened?

My daughter has a check up appt at her dentist in early Nov. so I think I will just wait until then to see what happens. It seems to be fairly common.
Thanks so much for all your opinions and advice.

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A.E.

answers from Harrisburg on

I'm assuming it's her lower front tooth that you're speaking about. It's called a second row & is very common. You can have her "wiggle" her baby tooth if she wants to, if she's not into "wiggling" the baby tooth just let it alone. It will eventually become loose & fall out on it's own. It is not doing any harm to let the baby tooth there. Before I became a SAHM I was a pediatric dental assistant so I've seen this same scenario more times than I can count. It's not the prettiest sight but if it doesn't bother her try not to let it bother you! :)

3 moms found this helpful

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D.P.

answers from Pittsburgh on

It's "shark teeth." This happened with my son's front bottom teeth. My dentist said it's generally only a problem if it happens on the top front teeth. It's very common on the bottom front. When his baby teeth fell out, the big teeth moved up right into position.

2 moms found this helpful
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B.F.

answers from Chicago on

My son had that. I went to the dentist with him and she told me that nothing needed to be done and the baby tooth would eventually come out naturally and that it was nothing to be concerned about. I was worried that the adult teeth would come in crooked or too far back. It took over six months until the baby tooth finally came out. By the time the baby tooth came out, the adult tooth was pretty much all the way out. The adult teeth moved into the normal place afterwards and really nothing needed to be done.

I would just point it out on your next regular visit.

We called him shark boy which he thought was really cool.

2 moms found this helpful
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M.O.

answers from Chicago on

I saw the prior posts and it sounds like its nothing to worry about. However I always give a phone call to the dr or dentist whenever I'm not sure. Several times they've told me to come in to look at something and I'd say more than 1/2 the time I've been told, "Good job Mama. It's better to address this now than to 'wait and see'."

You don't mention your daughter's age. My initial reaction was, if she's already 5 or 6 why not just have it pulled to ensure that the adult one comes in straight - better to do it now than have to talk about braces later, right?

But if she's still littler than that, I've give them a call and see what they say. Another idea is that if she hasn't been to a pediatric dentist yet, call YOUR dentist. Ask them to take a look. They will likely see her, count her teeth, give her a chair ride and keep it a very fun experience.

I did this with my first child when I noticed a black spot on her tooth - 2 yr molar. We did get referred to a ped dentist and am so glad we checked it out when we did.

I love the advice given on Mamapedia and the internet, but I don't blindly follow advice that goes against my gut. A phone call can't hurt!

1 mom found this helpful

E.T.

answers from Boston on

Hi C., Yes, this is actually fairly common and has happened to three of our grandchildren in the past 10 years. It is definitely recommended that you go to your dentist and let them evaluate the situation. If the baby tooth does not come out on its own by a determined time, they will have to pull it to enable the adult tooth to come in correctly rather than at an angle. Hope this helps.
E. Taft

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D.B.

answers from Boston on

I would split the difference - save yourself the cost of a visit but CALL the dentist and mention it. This is common, but ask the dentist what signs you should watch for and ask if it can wait until your daughter's regularly scheduled check-up.

1 mom found this helpful
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C.S.

answers from New London on

Yep, take your daughter in. This happened with my daughter and they removed the baby tooth.

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C.L.

answers from Boston on

This is common, my daughter is going to the dentist this week so that they can wiggle out two of her back baby teeth that won't move out of the way for her new adult teeth.

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J.H.

answers from Boston on

This actually happened to ME when I was little. I ended up having to get the baby tooth pulled out so that it didn't interfere with the alignment of the permanent tooth. Good luck!

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C.J.

answers from Dallas on

I would get a dentist's opinion. My husband had to have his pulled as a kid.
I had a molar that did something similar and I had to have that pulled as well.

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M.D.

answers from Burlington on

This happened to my husband. His family was poor. He went to see a dentist for the first time in his life when he was in his 20s. The dentist told him he felt bad about pulling out his two baby teeth because they were perfectly healthy but were of no use to him.

I agree with the mother who suggested you call the dental office and ask their advice.

Good luck,
: ) MD

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L.B.

answers from Boston on

My daughter had this happen more than once. I think it happened so much with her because she NEVER, EVER wiggled loose teeth. She would sometimes have teeth just barely hanging in there and would refuse to pull it out or have it pulled out. Most of them eventually fell out on their own, but she had one baby tooth still there when she had her braces put on, when she was 12. It was preventing the permanent tooth from coming in so it was pulled. It wasn't really loose, but it also didn't take much to pry it out.

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