Emergency Dental Care (And Avoiding It)

How much would you say you know about emergency dental care? Do you know whether the issue that you are experiencing is something that requires urgent care? Or, are you worried that you will discover you schedule an emergency visit but that you didn’t really need it? Of course, you may also want to know how to do your best to avoid this experience in the first place. We are here to help.

What Qualifies?

For starters, anything that is causing you the type of pain or discomfort that you feel you cannot withstand any longer qualifies. Anything that compromises the health of your tooth or other oral tissue (and without immediate care, serious consequences will arise) qualifies. If you are dealing with a sudden trauma like a broken tooth, dislodged tooth, apparent infection or abscess, then it qualifies.

Just remember, if it can’t wait, call us and we will schedule an emergency dental care visit for you. Note: If your problem includes blood loss or you believe your life is in danger, you will need to bypass our practice and instead contact 911 or make it to your nearest ER.

Can I Avoid Needing Emergency Care?

Yes and no. Sometimes, circumstances come together just right and you find yourself with an unavoidable problem like a broken tooth (for instance, a stray baseball hits you square in the smile). Other times, you could have done the following, for instance, to avoid requiring emergency dental care:

• You could have scheduled your restorative as we suggested
• You could have done a more consistent job with your dental hygiene
• You could have kept a mouth guard over your teeth while you practiced a sport