What Is Considered a Dental Emergency?
Feb 01, 2023
Dental emergencies are painful, cause swelling, and even result in significant problems later. However, what is considered a dental emergency? When should you visit the emergency dentist in Clearwater immediately, and when can you put off the visit until your next dental appointment with your dentist?
It is essential to differentiate between a common dental issue that can wait until the daytime or a crisis threatening your dental health. Here is the information you must have recognized dental emergencies needing immediate attention.
What Is a Dental Emergency?
The American family physician states that approximately 22 percent of Americans report experiencing dental pain in the last six months, indicating how common dental emergencies are. However, only some dental situations are considered an emergency. To help you determine whether you must visit an emergency dentist near you immediately or delay the treatment until your next dental appointment, consider the following situations for assistance.
- Severe Toothache: Do not consider a toothache a mere nuisance because it isn’t. Toothaches are your body’s indicators that something is wrong in your mouth. When you experience an unexpected and painful toothache finding a qualified center offering emergency dental care near you is a better option than delaying the treatment. The dentist from the facility can help diagnose and treat issues like aggravated cavities by offering fillings to help alleviate the toothache.
- Object Lodged between Teeth: Food articles can remain trapped between teeth, but if you find it challenging to remove them, the situation might result in a toothache. While you might need support to alleviate tooth pain, the problem is not a dental emergency. You can try flossing your teeth to remove the lodged particles between teeth and see the Clearwater dentist requesting urgent dental care near you the following day. However, you must ensure you visit the dentist to have the food particles trapped between your teeth removed to ensure they don’t invite your mouth bacteria to enjoy them and create infections in your teeth.
- Knocked-out Teeth: You might find it shocking to notice a tooth knocked out of your mouth from an impact. However, it requires immediate attention from an emergency dentist within 30 minutes to reinsert the tooth into its socket and help you preserve it. If you delay treatment beyond 30 minutes, the only solution available is to seek replacement solutions like dentures, bridges, or implants.
- Lost Crowns or Fillings: Crowns and fillings are restorations on a decayed or damaged tooth. The repairs help protect the tooth from additional damage from your mouth bacteria. However, they can become dislodged and fall, making you wonder whether you are in the midst of a dental emergency. While the missing restorations need treatment from your dentist, you can wait until the daytime to schedule an appointment with Dr. Cecilia Sorrelle to fix the tooth with a new dental filling or get the dental crown bonded to the damaged tooth. Unfortunately, if the Crown cannot be restored, the dentist will arrange for a new crown, custom-created for you from a dental laboratory. However, you must receive treatment for the lost crown or filling as soon as possible to prevent additional damage to your teeth.
- Broken or Chipped Teeth: An impact on your mouth can leave you with broken or chipped teeth causing pain or leaving you with no discomfort. You might think the tooth doesn’t need treatment because it is painless. However, do you realize your mouth bacteria doesn’t think like you and will soon penetrate the cracks to burrow deep into your tooth until it reaches its soft center, the dental pulp? If you don’t, we suggest you schedule an appointment with the dentist near you to fix the tooth by receiving conservative treatments like dental bonding or fillings on the surface of your tooth to prevent additional damage.
- Lacerations to Lip or Tongue: lip and tongue lacerations can happen when biting on hard foods or falling to cause bleeding. Although not a dental emergency, you need attention from a dentist if the bleeding is profuse and doesn’t subside within a short time.
Except for a knocked-out tooth and a dental abscess needing immediate care from an emergency dentist, the others can wait until daytime to receive treatment from a dental professional and don’t need emergency dental care. However, if the situation concerns you contacting an emergency dentist will help give you a good night’s rest without worrying about your dental health or other problems.
Dental Arts Clearwater attends to various dental emergencies reported by patients, providing prompt and gentle treatment. If you confront a dental emergency, kindly do not hesitate to contact the practice to receive the dental you need immediately.