What to Do During a Dental Emergency
Knowing how you can manage dental emergencies is essential when it comes to reducing pain and saving teeth. Accidents rarely happen (when running down or up the stairs, on the field or playground) but when they do, emergency dental treatment is required. Seeking emergency treatment helps boost the chances of saving teeth or tooth and prevents infections. Familiarise yourself with the guidelines listed below and help yourself, and other people, during an emergency by taking calm and decisive action.
Toothaches
Most people experience toothaches at some point in life. A strong toothache affects your moods, sleep and diet. Some several causes of toothache include:
- Abscesses and infections
- Tooth decay
- Newly erupting teeth
- Tooth erosion
- Swollen inflamed gums
- When you visit an emergency dentist, he or she will identify the cause of a toothache and begin treatment to relieve pain.
Adult loose or knocked out teeth
Accidents and sports are the major cause of dental emergencies in adults. Follow this procedure when someone loses their tooth. This procedure is only for adult teeth, not milk teeth.
Touch the top part of the tooth (crown). Don't handle it by its root, scrap the surrounding tissue or scrub it. If you have to clean it, gently immerse it in some mile or a sterile saline solution.
Try holding the tooth to its initial position and then hold it in place firmly. If you can't, place it in a cup of milk or under the tongue and take it to your dentist. If the loose tooth hasn't completely fallen out, see the dentist quickly, and they will preserve the nerve endings, including blood vessels, and then save the tooth.
Broken or chipped tooth
When you experience pain due to a broken or chipped tooth, pay your dentist a visit. They will determine if it's a complicated (involving the nerves) fracture or not. If possible, bring the fractured tooth fragment since the dentist can rebind it to the remaining tooth structure. Broken or chipped teeth require some restorative or cosmetic dentistry for the condition to be restored.
Broken Jaw
The initial emergency dental treatment for a broken jaw should be done at the hospital, so that the fracture's extent can be diagnosed. Before you get there, ensure the jaw is immobilised by applying cold pressure and strapping. An expert Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon can perform surgery, allowing the broken jaw to heal.
Depending on your teeth damage, oral health care or dental surgery is required after your initial action. Always visit a dentist to get professional care and treatment.