What type of dental problems would be covered under “emergency dental care?” Well, let’s take a look at one of the most common reasons people search out the dentist: pain. Tooth aches, tooth pain, sore gums around the teeth, and swollen areas around the jaw are some of the most common reasons people seek out a dentist for emergency dental care. We’re glad you do search for dental treatment while experiencing pain, for if you didn’t, the problem could become more complex, more painful, more time intensive and in general, get worse.
Not only can tooth and gum pain point to some pretty serious issues in the mouth, like infection of the tooth, as well as infection and abscess in the jaw, but there are also some instances where you just won’t be able to function normally, or be able to work because of the pain. Not being able to eat properly, or being embarassed because a tooth is chipped, and avoiding hot or cold drinks (even your favorites) are other situations that arise from a dental emergency that’s left untreated. Now, it’s not just “tooth pain” that you could classify as needing emergency dental care. Several others types of dental emergencies could call for you needing or wanting to seek immediate care. For instance, what if a veneer or crown comes off? You would want that to get treated pretty quickly.
A veneered tooth that looses that aesthetic veneer covering not only may be sensitive, but it won’t really look that good either. The same could be said about loosing a crown, however, crowns tend to be towards the back of the mouth, so in those cases, aren’t as visible. Chipping a tooth could also be classified as necessitating emergency dental care for aesthetic reasons, or because it causes pain. Even getting something stuck between the teeth that can’t be flossed out would require an emergency visit to the dentist. It’s an emergency because it isn’t planned and requires pretty immediate attention. It’s emergency dental care that we use to treat these emergencies.
Well, first off, before the dentist could even answer that, he would need to see what it is that’s going on in your mouth. Emergency dental care doesn’t just mean you call in, tell the front desk what you have going on over the phone, and then work begins with no other information. Your dentist will have to do a limited exam, otherwise there are some very important things he could miss. For instance, a cracked tooth will not always show up on an x-ray image. He has to test the teeth around the area that you have attention on. From there he should be able to tell what needs to be done. Dental pain and sensitivity may come about for several reasons. You could have infection in the root of your tooth due to a cavity, you could have infection in the jaw bone in the form of an abscess, a tooth could be cracked (this can cause some pretty intense moments of pain), and of course, it could be that your tooth broke somehow (obviously an emergency situation). Maybe you could just have a large cavity that’s becoming more and more sensitive. In some instances patients have confused localized gum pain with tooth pain. Which is understandable. Have you ever had popcorn kernels stuck in your teeth? It’s not very comfortable, and in fact can become quite painful. If the kernel remains stuck in your gums around the teeth, that area of gum will become infected, inflamed and painful to touch. This, to some, can be confused with tooth pain (but luckily requires much less to resolve).
Some dental emergencies can actually be treated in one day at a dental office (definitely including this one). Crowns, large fillings, root canals (in order to clean out infected tooth roots), bonding (a process where tooth-colored filling material is placed on a chipped tooth in order to repair it), veneers, and even deep cleaning of the gums in order to remove bacteria and food particles (as well as those large corn kernels that get stuck so inextricably between your teeth and gums), can all be done in one day. You could come in with an infected (and therefore painful) tooth, get it the roots of the tooth cleaned out, get them filled, and receive a permanent crown, all in one visit. There aren’t a lot of places right now that can do that, as it requires an in-office mill that can make material of a similar strength and quality of your enamel (the hardest substance IN your body). Being able to give emergency dental care treatment in one day, where before it could actually require 2 or 3 visits is pretty revolutionary, and has only been able to be done [successfully] in the last few years. So, don’t wait do get emegency dental care, don’t let it get worse, get it done and if you can, get it done in one visit.
Keep healthy my friends.
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