Mouth Wound

A MOUTH wound can be caused by the person’s own teeth, a blow to the face, extraction of a tooth, cut to the tongue, lip, etc. Be aware, blood may be inhaled into the lungs, causing breathing difficulties.

Treatment

1 Put on gloves and place a sterile dressing over the wound.

2 Ask the patient to apply pressure to the sterile dressing for 10 minutes.

3 If bleeding continues, ask the patient to re-apply the sterile dressing for a further 10 minutes and if bleeding continues after this, arrange for transport to hospital.

4 If bleeding stops, secure the sterile dressing in place with adhesive tape, making sure you do not obstruct the mouth or nose.

Treatment of teeth

1 Where a tooth has become detached from the socket, apply a gauze pad to the socket.

2 Ensure that the pad is large enough to prevent the upper and lower teeth touching.

3 Ask the patient to bite down on to the gauze to apply pressure.

4 Arrange for transport to a dentist.