What to Do When You Have a Dental Emergency
Nobody wants to have a dental emergency, but unfortunately, they do happen. A dental emergency is any situation that requires immediate dental care. Many times, these situations arise unexpectedly and can be quite painful. Whether you've chipped a tooth or lost a filling, it's important to know what to do in order to minimize the damage and get the dental care you need as quickly as possible. This blog post will give you a run-down of what to do in case of a dental emergency.
Types of Dental Emergencies
There are four main types of dental emergencies: toothaches, knocked-out teeth, cracked teeth, and lost fillings/crowns. Each type of emergency requires slightly different care.
Toothaches: A toothache is when you have pain in your teeth and jaw. This pain can be caused by tooth decay. You might feel the toothache in different ways. It might come and go or it might be constant. The pain might also get worse when you eat or drink, especially if the food or drink is hot or cold. To ease the pain, rinse your mouth with warm water and use floss to remove any food that might be stuck between your teeth. You can also take Ibuprofen if you're in pain. If the pain persists, call your dentist right away.
Knocked-out teeth: If you've lost a tooth, try to find the tooth and pick it up by the crown (the white part) rather than the root. If possible, put the tooth back in its socket and bite down on a piece of gauze to hold it in place. If a tooth is chipped, gather up the broken pieces and take them to the dentist. But if the entire tooth has been knocked out, it’s important to act quickly. You can increase your chances of saving the tooth by being careful and acting fast.
Cracked teeth: If you have a cracked tooth and it's painful to breathe through your mouth or drink cold fluids, bite on clean, moist gauze or cloth to help relieve the symptoms until you reach your dentist's office. Avoid brushing or flossing your teeth until you've seen your dentist—you don't want to make any cracks worse. Contact your dentist as soon as possible.
Lost fillings/crowns: Try to find the lost filling or crown and gently rinse it off with warm water if it's dirty. If you can find it, put it back in place using temporary adhesive or denture glue until you can get to your dentist. Call your dentist right away—they'll be able to give you advice on how best to proceed.
Conclusion
No one likes having a dental emergency, but unfortunately, they do happen from time to time. The most important thing is not to panic—instead, focus on taking care of yourself and getting to a dentist as soon as possible so that they can help resolve the issue. Hopefully, this blog post has given you some helpful guidance on what to do if you ever find yourself in a dental emergency situation!
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At Andrew Kim, DDS, we are always looking for new ways to improve the dental health of patients. Our goal has always been and will always be to create and maintain a family-oriented dental practice that empowers and equips all our patients to create healthy dental hygiene habits.
At our family-friendly Escondido dental office, we provide preventative care, cleaning, and dental procedures to help our patients be confident in both their smiles and overall health. Call us at (760) 747-5295 to book your dental appointment with us.
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Andrew Kim, DDS is an Escondido dentist providing advanced dental treatment to the Escondido communities and the Northern San Diego area. We make your comfort and oral health our top priority. Book your appointment today!