Bitten or Chewed Lip after Dental Treatment

After any dental treatment where your child has been anesthetized (numbed), your child might want to scratch his/her face because there is a tingling sensation as the anesthetic is wearing off. Please watch that your child does not scratch or bite his/her cheeks, lip, or tongue. Your child feels his/her face and lips differently, and he/she may not be able to understand that the area is numbed. The numbness will last another 2-3 hours after we have finished working with your child. Please do not give your child any solid foods or snacks for a few hours as your child may bite or chew his/her cheeks, lip, or tongue and probably will not feel the injury. Give your child soft foods such as soup, Jell-O, ice cream, yogurt, juice, milk, milk shakes, or smoothies to maintain a soft diet.

What to do if this happens:

If your child has bitten his/her cheek, lip, or tongue, there may be swelling which may worsen over the next 2-3 days. A yellowish, white plaque (soft scab) will develop. This is part of the healing process. The lesion will heal over the next 10-14 days. If your child complains of pain, you may give him/her children's Tylenol or Advil and apply Orabase over the swollen areas.

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