One minute, life is going smoothly. The next, you have a dental emergency on your hands. It can happen to anyone at any time without warning—often at great inconvenience. What do you do in those situations? How should you respond? Well, you certainly don’t want to panic! Stay calm and collected and immediately contact your emergency dentist, who can help restore you to health. But what if you can’t see the dentist right away? Here are some examples of dental emergencies and what you can do while you wait to get professional help.
Types of Dental Emergencies
Although many things can happen to your teeth, here are some examples of common dental emergencies:
- Knocked-out tooth.
- Severe toothache.
- Chipped tooth.
- Fractured or cracked tooth.
- Object stuck between teeth.
Immediate Response to Dental Emergencies
In nearly all dental emergencies, you need to call your dentist. While you wait to see them, however, there are some things you can do to help make your treatment a success. These things include the following:
- For a knocked-out tooth, rinse the tooth with
warm water. Do not touch the root or any tissue on the root. Try to place it
back in its socket, or place the tooth in milk or saltwater to keep it moist. Do
your best to get to the dentist’s office within an hour to give yourself the
best possible chance of saving your tooth. - For a toothache, rinse your mouth with warm
water and try to gently floss around the affected tooth to make sure nothing is
stuck. If the toothache persists, call your dentist. In the meantime, you can take
over-the-counter medication and place a cold compress on your face to manage
the pain. - If you have a cracked tooth, you can rinse warm
water in your mouth to clean the area. If you are experiencing pain, use a cold
compress on your face.
Dental Help
Your dentist has the necessary training to treat these emergencies, and they will do everything they can to preserve your natural teeth and alleviate your pain. For example, your dentist can reposition your knocked-out tooth in the socket and place a temporary splint to keep it in place for two weeks. Your dentist can also determine if your toothache is a result of tooth decay that has reached the inner layers, in which case they will perform root canal therapy. For fractured or cracked tooth, your dentist can use a tooth-colored composite resin filling to seal the tooth and prevent bacteria from penetrating to the inner layers.
Although you can’t predict or plan when and how a dental emergency occurs, you can plan how you will respond. Time is often of the essence in these situations, and it is important to act quickly and wisely to give yourself the best chances of overcoming the emergency with your natural teeth intact. If you choose the right course of action, you can keep your smile happy and healthy for many years to come.
About the Practice
Beverly Farms Dental, formerly called Robert A Blake DDS, has been serving patients in the community for over 30 years. Our doctors have the experience and expertise to meet any dental need, including preventive, restorative, cosmetic, and emergency services. To contact them for an appointment, you can call (978) 927-3515 or click here.