What Qualifies as A Dental Emergency?

What Qualifies as A Dental Emergency?

27/03/2023

All aspects of life can be negatively impacted by dental pain. What begins as a little toothache can develop into headaches, restless nights, and a lack of appetite.

Understanding what a dental emergency is and how to treat one is crucial, since dental emergencies differ from medical crises. Emergency dental appointments are available for both new and existing patients at Kettering Dental & Implant Clinic, as we take dental emergencies seriously.

This article seeks to explain what a dental emergency is, how it is treated, and how it varies from a medical emergency, if you’re concerned that you are going through one right now.

What Qualifies as a Dental Emergency?

If you’re in pain, you might be wondering if you can schedule an urgent consultation to identify and address the problem’s root cause. A wide range of issues can require emergency dental treatment, including:

• Extreme dental pain: If you are experiencing extreme dental pain that is impacting your day-to-day life, you may need to schedule an emergency dentist consultation.

• Uncontrolled bleeding from the mouth is regarded as a dental emergency, so you should schedule an appointment with your dentist straight away.

• Knocked-out tooth: If your tooth has been knocked out due to trauma or impact, scheduling an emergency dental visit right away may help to save the tooth.

• Infection – You should consult your dentist right away if you notice any swelling in or around your mouth or feel any knots in your jaw.

Whether your symptoms point to a dental emergency or not, you should still seek guidance from a dentist. To help you feel better as quickly as possible, your dentist might be able to provide a last-minute appointment.

If you have questions about any of the symptoms mentioned above, call your dentist.

A Dental Emergency Is Not…

• a cracked or chipped tooth, unless there are sharp pieces left in your mouth, or you are in excruciating pain,

• When a toothache is not inflicting extreme pain, it can wait until a routine dental check-up. If you can wait to see a dentist, you might not need an emergency appointment for your toothache.

• Even though a lost crown or filling is not a dental emergency, your dentist might prioritise you and schedule an earlier appointment for you.

Even if you decide that your circumstance is not urgent, you should nevertheless get in touch with your dentist. You might get treated far sooner than you anticipate if the clinic can set up an emergency appointment.

How To Care for a Dental Emergency

It’s crucial to know how to effectively take care of your dental health while you’re waiting for your appointment with the dentist. Maintaining your oral health is crucial while you are dealing with dental issues, even if you are unsure of what is causing the issue.

Broken or chipped teeth

Only when you have a significant or painful fracture is this a true emergency. After scheduling an emergency appointment, you can take care of your broken tooth in the meantime by carefully cleansing your mouth with warm water and placing a cold compress on the outside of your mouth to ease any discomfort.

Knocked out Tooth

It’s easy to panic when a tooth is knocked out, especially if it is from the front of your mouth. A knocked-out tooth, however, is more than just an aesthetic issue. The remaining teeth may shift as a result of a space in the gum line left by a missing tooth, and the jaw may become weaker.

An urgent dental consultation might be able to save your tooth if you act quickly. Cleaning your tooth under running water while you wait for your appointment should be done with caution so as not to touch the root. Put the tooth back into the socket if you can. You should put your tooth in a glass of milk until you can visit the dentist if this is not possible. This will help to preserve any live components of your knocked-out tooth and maintain the pH balance of the tooth.

Whether you have an illness or a tooth that has been knocked out, you should try to keep the region as clean and free of food debris as possible, because this could lead to an infection that spreads.

For more information, check out our emergency dental care page.