April 11,1992
EL UVALDE TIMES
Page 11
Accidents happen every day and sometimes the teeth may be involved. If trauma has occured to the mouth a few simple suggestions to help minimize long term damage should be followed.
The extent of damage can range from simple loosening of some teeth to fracture of the jaw. The main point is, if the mouth has sustained an injury , no matter how slight, it is always best to at least have a dental exam to determine if indeed the dentition (teeth) has been damaged. Injury can occur any time the mouth has incurred a blow. This can come from falling down to being hit with a baseball. Here arc some steps to take if your mouth is involved in an accident.
Rinse the mouth or area if bleeding accompanies the trauma to better access the injury. If possible, place a cold compress immediately on the injury to keep the swelling down. Check right away to see if a tooth has been lost. This should be the first order of business. If a tooth has been lost, finding it is the next step. After finding the tooth it is important to keep it moist. This can be done by cither placing it in the persons mouth or a glass of water. (Do not scrub the tooth). Going to the dental office or emergency room as quickly as possible will increase the possibility of saving it by reimplantation.
If a tooth has been fractured but is still in place, again, getting to the dental office as quickly as possible still applies. With fracture often the teeth can become loose which may require supportive splinting.
Effects of trauma can vary. Many times teeth that have been bumped can turn dark and eventually abcess. this does not mean the tooth will be lost, only that additional treatment may be necessary.
One other consideration when evaluating trauma is the possibility that the jaw itself could become damaged. Since the teeth are set in the bone of the jaw, any injuries sustained by the teeth can be transmitted to the jaw. Carefull evaluation of the bone itself as well as the tempromandibular joint would be advisable. The tempromandibular joint is the joint that connects the lower jaw to the upper jaw.	_
After everything has been checked, follow-up appointments may be required to re-evaluate the status of affected teeth. Common sense and remaining calm will do much to ease an already tense situation. The best treatment, of course, is prevention. If athletically inclined the use of a sports mouth guard is indicated. Wearing a helmet while bicycling, skateboarding, or skating can help to protect the dentition. Remember, any mouth injury should be considered serious enough to warrant a professional exam.
Hidalgo...
from Page 3
every day activities of their campuses,” Mr. Hidalgo stated.
Computers
“We have spent a lot of monies on computers this year,” Mr. Hidalgo told us, “ but we still have along way to go in this area. We need to get computers in every room and move away from computer labs.” Test Scores
Hidalgo was critical of the current emphasis to prepare students to take state mandated tests. “We need work to improve test scores through curriculum and not through teaching students how to take tests. If we work on our instruction process the test scores will take care of themselves. We must improve on the method and also recruit our teachers, concentrating on hiring personnel that teach in their respective major field. Its important that we find a way of testing a pupil before he moves on to the next grade to to see if he has mastered the skills for that grade. This would serve as a means of accountability for our single
grade campuses.”
School Board Meetings
Regarding school board meetings, Hidalgo hopes to hold an open meeting at least once a year — or a general board meeting to receive ideas from thecommunity. “I’m not talking about a gripe session,” he stated. “I am talking about a session to exchange ideas. The community would also be informed of what are the th ings we can and cannot do because of state regulations.”
Para las infecciones de garganta se pueden hacer gargaras con vinagre casero y agua; agua tibia con sal, o agua oxygenada con agua.
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