Dental emergencies need immediate attention to protect your smile from complications like tooth decay or dental infection. When is why we’re talking about how to respond to common dental emergencies and when to call our team. In today’s blog, your Grand Prairie, TX, dentist talks about what to do when faced with a dental emergency.
Common Examples of Dental Emergencies
What do we consider a dental emergency? Any damage or injury to the teeth or gums that isn’t life threatening is a dental emergency, and a cause for concern. Examples include a chipped, cracked, or broken tooth. Unexplained pain in a tooth or an object caught between the teeth that floss cannot remove is an example. You should also contact us for immediate care when a tooth is knocked loose or out, or if a crown, filling, or dental prosthetic is damaged or compromised. When these issues occur, give us a call right away, even if the injury occurs outside of normal business hours. We will call you back with a time to see you and offer treatment.
Easing Your Initial Discomfort
You can take action to help ease your initial discomfort following a dental emergency. For example, you can rinse with warm water and use cloth or gauze to control any bleeding. A cold compress or ice pack to the side of the face could also help by controlling facial swelling. If a tooth is damaged, try to recover and bring any pieces of the tooth with you. If not, we can still repair the tooth! Likewise, if a tooth is knocked out, place it in a glass of salt water or milk and bring it with you. Only touch the crown portion, never the root! You can also take an over-the-counter pain reliever as needed.
How We Repair Your Tooth
Our team can often address minor injuries with dental bonding, using composite resin to provide lifelike repair in only one visit. If you have more substantial injuries, then our team could create and place a custom dental crown. We can also restore a knocked-out tooth to its original position in your smile. To help prevent future injuries, then our team could provide a custom-made athletic mouthguard, which helps provide a greater level of protection than the standard boil-and-bite options.
If you have any questions about how to respond to a dental emergency, or if you have an injured tooth that needs attention, then contact our team today to learn more. We want to help return your smile to optimal health, function, and beauty again, so you can smile with confidence and enjoy better oral health and bite function too.
Do You Have Any Questions About Emergency Dentistry?
The team at Pecan Tree Dental in Grand Prairie, TX, are ready to help your smile with lifelike and durable treatment. To schedule an appointment with our team, call us today at 972-262-5111. Don’t let an injury lead to cavities or even infection, talk to our team about possible treatment options.
