When Should One Visit an Emergency Dentist?

You need to know the kinds of dental injuries that are classified as severe and require an immediate emergency dentist. Unfortunately, not everybody has the skill to assess dental trauma and make such a call. The trauma to the mouth or tooth should be a thorough assessment to ensure no permanent damage if you don’t go to the emergency room immediately.

Injuries happen anytime, be it day or night and at any place. Some injuries need immediate attention, while others might not be severe enough and can be treated by your family dentist.

Types Dental Emergencies and How Dental Emergency Help You

Knowing the step to take when dental emergencies strike helps you remain calm and avoid permanent conditions. Some of the common dental emergencies discussed below and what do to when you encounter any:

Toothache

Toothaches are common in patients’ faces. They range from moderate to severe. The action taken depends on the cause of the pain and if the pain is persistent. If your tooth erupts, it’ll often cause toothaches, but it doesn’t require you to visit a dentist. Instead, it is usually treated with over-the-counter pain relievers. However, toothaches related to tooth decay, broken teeth, or tooth trauma need to be evaluated by Dr. Jensen Bouton.

• What to do:

1. Use warm water to clean the painful area
2. Avoid applying heat to the area around the tooth
3. Ensure you floss in case of any food that is trapped in
4. Apply a piece of ice to the area with pain to help in reducing pain or swelling

Broken Tooth

Contact our dental office in North Port, FL, if you break your tooth. Dental emergencies such as knocked-out teeth need quick action. This helps determine if you lose or save the tooth and avoid infection or more invasive dental treatment.

• What to do:

1. Use water to rinse your mouth and apply cold compresses to help reduce pain
2. Find any tooth fragments, save them and bring them with you to our office.

Knocked Out Permanent Tooth

If you have a knocked out, you should report it immediately. The neighboring teeth could have sustained injuries, and you want to ensure that the roots of the permanent teeth were not damaged.

• What to do:

1. Locate the lost tooth and only touch the crown and not the roots.
2. Clean the tooth without scrubbing it
3. You can reinsert the tooth back into the socket
4. Ensure the tooth is moist until you get to the emergency dentist near you.

Tooth Displacement

A displaced tooth has been hit enough to become loose but hasn’t been knocked out completely. The tooth needs to be treated with care. How the tooth is treated depends on if the tooth is primary or permanent.

Usually, primary teeth heal independently or fall out without medical intervention. However, permanent teeth need attention even when they are slightly displaced. This ensures the tooth isn’t in danger of dying or getting infected. If your tooth is displaced, visit our emergency dentist in North Port, FL, for treatment.

Root Fracture

Root fractures are tricky because your dentist must use an x-ray to detect them. Direct trauma to the tooth causes root fracture. It is always better to rule out a root fracture if you think you have any. When a root fracture is ignored, it might lead to tooth loss.

Our dentists at Shore Dental in Northport can confirm a root fracture with dental x-rays. If they find one, they’ll treat you depending on the pain you’re feeling and the fracture position.

• What to do:

1. To the injured area, place a cold compress
2. Apply pain relief that the dentist approves
3. Contact our office for further instructions

Some Precautions of Dental Emergency

To prevent yourself from dealing with dental emergencies, you should apply certain precautions. They include:

• Avoid using your teeth to cut things or objects. Instead, always use scissors or other cutting objects. Using your teeth to cut things can break them.
• Avoid chewing hard food, ice, or popcorn kernels since all can crack your teeth
• Always wear a mouthguard when participating in recreational activities or sports. This will prevent your teeth or mouth from being injured.