There are certain dental issues that you can experience that dictate not waiting for an can’t wait for an appointment. Broken or knocked-out teeth or severe pain caused by trauma or infection require emergency dental care.
Dreamy Draw provides emergency dental care for dental issues for new and existing patients. After-hours calls are taken for our existing patients. We do our very best to ensure your dental emergency gets taken care of quickly, so no further problems develop.
What Is a Dental Emergency?
- Dental trauma such as teeth that are broken or knocked out
- Missing fillings or dental crowns that expose the nerves in the teeth
- Intense pain in the face, which can make it hard to bite or chew
- Dental infections that cause pain and swelling in the tongue, gums and face
- TMJ, or lockjaw, a painful condition that makes it difficult to open and close your mouth
Types of Dental Emergencies
Regularly scheduled visits to Dreamy Draw Dental are an essential part of your dental health, preventing gum disease and keeping your smile healthy and bright! Dental plaque and calculus can be removed through daily brushing and flossing, but there are places in your mouth that you cannot reach with a toothbrush and dental floss. A professional cleaning by one of our registered dental hygienists will ensure the very best removal of calculus in those hard-to-reach places.
What to do during a Dental Emergency
Many people try to relieve the pain caused by these conditions with over-the-counter medications, but this only provides temporary relief, and it does nothing to solve the underlying problem. The only way to end the pain and discomfort is to get professional dental care.
Call our office immediately and while you wait for our return call, try the following:
- Before visiting the emergency dentist, rinse your mouth with warm water. This will wash away germs and cleanse the area.
- If your tooth is broken or completely removed, place the tooth or fragment in a whole cup of milk or store it between your cheek and tongue to keep it moist. If your entire tooth has been knocked out, try to reinsert it first. If successful, bite down on a gauze pad to keep it in place.
- Make sure you can tell the dentist exactly what caused the dental emergency, such as getting hit in the face with a ball or falling down the stairs. The more details you can provide, the better. This will help the dentist determine the best treatment.
- Do not take aspirin before your visit. Instead, take ibuprofen or acetaminophen.
- During your initial visit, the dentist will perform an assessment of your teeth and mouth, checking for signs of infection and other disease. The dentist will then prepare you for the appropriate procedure.
- The time it takes to perform emergency dental care depends on the cause of the problem. For example, infection in the gums or teeth can generally be treated quickly, usually with a scraping or other cleaning procedure and a prescription for antibiotics to be taken at home.
- Other emergency dental procedures may take longer. For example, a broken tooth can take about two hours to set and repair, while a missing filling or crown can take an hour or so to replace. For knocked-out teeth, the dentist will either try to repair the tooth or begin the process of creating a bridge or implant.
- Most nerve-related dental emergencies, including TMJ or exposed nerves, are treated with a numbing agent placed right on the affected area. However, the dentist may schedule a follow-up to treat the source of the pain and prevent future dental emergencies.