5 Dental Issues That Call for an Emergency Dental Appointment
Dental emergencies are practically unpredictable. Get to learn about common dental emergencies and what to do when faced with any of these dental emergencies.
It’s nothing out of the ordinary for you or your loved ones to suffer from dental issues. However, not all dental issues are the same; some call for you to seek immediate medical attention from emergency dentistry near you.
You can never predict when you will be faced with a dental emergency. The first step towards handling yourself as you should, during such a scenario begins with you being able to tell apart a dental emergency from a non- emergency dental issue.
Dental emergencies can occur at any time of day or night; that is why you should have an emergency contact number of our trusted emergency dentist in San Pablo on you at all times.
Although your regular dentist should be your first line of defense when you are being faced with any dental problem, it’s essential to understand that a dental emergency can occur after office hours, and their offices might be closed for the day.
With this in mind, you should ask your dentist in San Pablo to recommend emergency dentistry near you that you can visit if they are unavailable during your dental emergency.
How Do You Know If What You Have Is a Dental Emergency?
Certain markers can help you grade if the dental problem you have is a dental emergency or not.
Ticking this list will help save you from making a pointless trip to our emergency dentistry facility, especially if what you have can wait to be resolved by our regular dentist in San Pablo during normal office hours.
Here are the key pointers of an emergency dental problem:
- If you have any loose teeth
- If you or your loved one has a persistent and severe toothache
- If you have any bleeding or swellings on your gums
If your
- toothache is accompanied by a headache and fever, because this could be an indication of an infection and can be a life-threatening dental problem
- If your jaw or surrounding facial features are swollen
- If you have a tooth that has been knocked off
- If you have any excessive bleeding from a cut or tear in your mouth
- If you have a cracked tooth that is causing you severe pain
What Common Dental Issues Should Be Handled As Emergencies?
Here are some of the dental problems that require immediate medical attention:
- Having a Broken, Chipped or Fractured Tooth
This is considered a dental emergency, especially if the crack or fracture is accompanied by severe pain or has sharp pieces that are causing any discomfort in your mouth.
A broken or fractured tooth usually indicates that there is some form of damage that has occurred within your tooth.
Our dentist will analyze the affected tooth to ascertain whether it can be salvaged or not, because some fractures may be so severe that your tooth may not survive the incident and may need to be replaced.
In such an emergency, you should rinse out your mouth gently using warm water. You can apply a cold compress to reduce facial swelling, in case your fracture was a result of facial trauma.
Take some pain killers to alleviate the pain as you make your way to our emergency dentist for treatment.
- A Knocked-Out Tooth
This requires prompt medical attention because seeing our dentist in good time increases the chances of your tooth being preserved and remaining viable enough for reinsertion.
In such a scenario, you should pick up your affected tooth by the crown and avoid interfering with the root. Rinse it off gently, try and put it back in its socket and keep it in place by biting down gently on it.
If you cannot keep it in place, carry it in a cup of milk to keep it moist as you go in to see our dentist for treatment.
- Loose Tooth
This is also a dental emergency. If you are faced with such an issue, you should try and put your affected tooth back in its proper position by applying very little pressure using your finger. Bite down gently on it as you rush in to see our dentist, who will promptly resolve the issue.
- Cuts or Injuries Within or Around Your Mouth
Any lacerations or cuts on your mouth, tongue, cheeks, or lips are considered dental emergencies because they can result in excessive bleeding.
You should clean the affected area with warm water and try to stop the bleeding if you can by applying gauze and putting some pressure on the site as you make your way to our dentist.
- An Abscessed Tooth
This a life-threatening dental issue and requires prompt medical attention. A pocket of pus forms within a tooth that leads to a severe infection.
It is usually indicated by severe and persistent toothache, fever, tooth sensitivity, swollen lymph nodes, and bumps on the gums around the affected tooth.
It would help if you rinsed out your mouth with salty water severally to draw up the pus and alleviate the pain as you make your way to our dentist.
At iSmile San Pablo, we have an experienced emergency dentist available 24/7 to ensure that you do not have to face any dental emergency on your own.