Emergency Dentist Services: What Counts as a Dental Emergency?

How to Tell If Your Dental Problem Is a True Emergency Dentist Situation

Dental pain has a way of hitting at the absolute worst times like Friday evening right before a holiday weekend and you are left trying to figure out whether you need an emergency dentist right now or if this is something that can wait until your regular dentist near me opens on Monday morning. A knocked out permanent tooth is the most clear cut emergency dentist situation there is and time is absolutely critical because if you can get to an emergency dentist within thirty minutes to an hour and the tooth is handled properly there is a decent chance it can be saved and reimplanted but after a couple hours the odds drop off a cliff. Severe pain that is not responding to over the counter pain relievers and is keeping you from sleeping or functioning is another emergency dentist scenario because that level of pain usually means there is an infection or an exposed nerve that needs urgent dental care and antibiotics before it spreads and becomes a much bigger health problem. Swelling in your face or jaw that is getting worse quickly is a red alert emergency dentist situation because facial swelling can indicate an abscess that is spreading and if the swelling starts to affect your breathing or swallowing you need to go straight to the emergency room and then follow up with an emergency dentist for the dental source of the infection. A broken tooth where the fracture exposes the inner layers of the tooth or causes sharp pain needs urgent dental care because the exposed dentin and pulp are vulnerable to bacteria and the tooth can become infected or the crack can spread and make the tooth unsalvageable. Bleeding from the gums that will not stop especially after an injury or extraction is an emergency dentist situation because uncontrolled bleeding needs to be addressed immediately and the emergency dentist can pack the socket and get the bleeding under control.

What an Emergency Dentist Does to Save Your Tooth and Stop the Pain

When you get to an emergency dentist office the first priority is getting your pain under control and assessing the damage so they can make a plan to save your tooth if possible or extract it if the tooth is beyond saving and replace it with something like affordable dental implants down the road. An emergency dentist will take x rays immediately to see what is going on below the gum line because the visible part of the tooth often does not tell the whole story and an infection or crack that extends into the root changes the emergency dentist treatment approach completely. If you have a severe toothache caused by an infection the emergency dentist will likely open up the tooth to relieve pressure and drain the infection and then pack it with medication and start you on antibiotics and a root canal might be needed to definitively save the tooth once the infection is under control. For a knocked out tooth the emergency dentist will carefully clean the tooth and the socket attempt to reinsert the tooth and then splint it to the neighboring teeth so it stays stable while the ligaments reattach and you will need follow up care and possibly a root canal down the road even if the reimplantation is successful. A broken or cracked tooth gets evaluated by the emergency dentist to determine how deep the crack goes because a crack that stops above the gum line can often be saved with a crown but a crack that extends down into the root means the tooth cannot be saved and will need extraction followed by a discussion about dental implants or a bridge. Before you leave the emergency dentist will give you clear aftercare instructions and prescriptions for pain relief and antibiotics if needed and they will make sure you have a follow up appointment scheduled with your regular dentist near me or with them if they are going to continue your care.