Tips To Deal With A Dental Emergency

A dental emergency is something that many of us will need at some point in our life, but if you’re looking after your teeth properly, you’ll hopefully reduce that risk somewhat. However, at the same time, accidents can certainly happen, and you can suddenly find yourself with a knocked-out tooth or a filling that needs replacing. Whatever it is, here are some tips on how to deal with a dental emergency.

What Is Considered A Dental Emergency?

A dental emergency is something where you can’t wait for a long period of time to see a dentist. This might be less than 24 hours, and some dental emergencies can happen at times where your local dental practice is closed. There are certain things that might be considered a dental emergency, but the major factor is where you are feeling severe pain that’s too uncomfortable to manage and perhaps doesn’t get eased with painkillers.

When it comes to dental emergencies, you want to get help as quickly as possible whether you are registered at a dentist or not. There’s always going to be somewhere that will help in dealing with your emergency and to help get you back to that fighting fit health you want to be at.

Types Of Dental Emergencies

So what are the types of dental emergencies that people suffer from? These are worth knowing, should you ever find yourself needing an oral surgeon or dentist to help you. There are more types of dental emergencies out there that might not be mentioned in this list, but it certainly covers the majority of dental emergencies that will warrant you seeing a medical expert as quickly as possible.

Falling over and injuring your mouth can be one that is most common. Accidents happen, and we might trip and hurt our mouth in some way whether it’s the teeth itself or the gums and bone structure of your jaw. A knocked-out tooth is definitely a sure sign that you want to seek medical emergency as quickly as possible. It can help to increase the chances of saving your tooth if you’re quick to get help. Any type of severe pain that doesn’t seem to be going away or is at least persistent in nature is certainly warranted to get assistance.

Infections can often happen in teeth, gums and in the bone area of your jaw, which will need to be taken a look at urgently. If this is ignored, that infection might spread, get worse and even become life-threatening in some cases. Tooth sensitivity can be a common pain that people feel, and for a lot of us, it’s a case of the enamel is weakened and so it’s hard to rebuild the enamel once it’s weathered down to nothing. You want to get medical help if that’s the case so that steps can be taken to cover it and to stop it from being sensitive. Any broken teeth will want to get looked at straight away as that can open up the nerve endings in your teeth and make it very painful to even breath in and out.

Abscessed gums and sores can be a sign of infection and again need looking at as soon as you’re able. And lastly, if there’s any bleeding, or swelling of the gums, then it’s worth seeking medical help as soon as possible, especially if the symptoms persist.

Initial Steps To Take

When a dental emergency happens, they’re not always one to occur at the most appropriate time. With that being said, there’s certainly plenty you can do in terms of taking the right steps to get yourself the best help possible. Firstly, it’s good to assess the situation and figure out what exactly has happened with your oral health. It might be simply diagnosing from any of the above and getting someone to take a visual check if you’re unable. You’ll then want to explain to your dentist if you have one what the problem is and they’ll tell you what to do next. If you don’t have a dentist, then a local ER will be able to take you or they may recommend somewhere else.

For any swelling, pain, broken or knocked-out teeth, you want to apply a warm compress to the area where possible. This will help to reduce the swelling and pain, which will be helpful for the dentist to properly treat you. You’ll want to keep hold of any knocked-out teeth and place these in a paper towel or container. The best solution though if possible, is to keep the tooth back in its original place. This is useful to do because it will help keep the tooth alive for longer and the longer you leave the tooth out, the sooner it’s going to die.

Once you’re at the dentist, you’ll be well looked after, but it’s important you do what you can in these initial stages to make sure you’re okay and that you don’t do anything that’s going to impact your health. It might be worth not taking the painkillers as the dentist, or oral surgeon might give you pain relief once you get there. However, if it’s too painful, it’s worth taking it to give you some comfort for the time being. The main thing to take away from all of this though is to get emergency and medical help as soon as you possibly can. In some cases, you’ll be fighting against the clock.

Dental emergencies are something that you don’t want to wait around on for the sake of your oral health and for your personal well-being. They can be pretty painful to experience, and you don’t want to end up being in discomfort for long. Make sure that you’re recognizing when it’s a dental emergency and getting the help you need as soon as possible. Take those initial steps with caution and try to get to a dental practice as soon as you are able to get the assistance needed.