What Is Considered a Dental Emergency?

Jun 01, 2022

Sometimes life will throw you curveballs inform of dental emergencies. So what is a dental emergency? A dental complication involves a tooth or its surrounding tissues and requires immediate professional care. Dental emergencies may involve severe pain, sometimes no pain, or uncontrollable bleeding. Visit us at Dental Arts Clearwater for any dental emergencies.

How To Know if It’s a Dental Emergency

How can one tell the dental issues you are experiencing are something to be concerned about? We tend to ignore the minor tooth pains we have most of the time. However seemingly small it may seem, dental pains can be severe if left untreated. Knowing when one should visit an emergency dentist in Clearwater for immediate treatment is important. The following are signs one can use to determine if you have a dental emergency.

Metallic Taste

Having a metal taste in your mouth is a sign of a loose filling or crown. A loose or cracked filling is an invitation to infections or cavities.

Dental Abscess

Abscesses are often a sign of untreated caries or gum diseases. It usually occurs at the root of your teeth. Swollen glands, fever, or a foul taste could also signify tooth abscess.

Loose Tooth

As an adult, you should not have a wiggly tooth. Your teeth are supposed to have strongly matured and be sturdy for you to live a healthy lifestyle. However, teeth may start to feel loose due to various reasons. One of them could be tooth injury, whether it was because of a sports injury or a car accident. It would be best to go for a checkup even when your teeth appear safe. A checkup will ensure you have no nerve or jaw damage.

What Isn’t a Dental Emergency?

If you can wait for a few days before seeing a dentist, it is not a dental emergency. The following are dental issues our dentist at 33756 considers not urgent.

  • Toothaches that are not causing excruciating pain. Over-the-counter prescriptions can also manage this type of toothache.
  • You are missing fillings or crowns. You can always try placing the back before your appointment using the recommended over-the-counter adhesive.
  • A broken tooth that has not left any sharp fragments or exposed your nerves is considered a non-urgent issue. Cracked or chipped teeth that are not causing any pain can also wait a few days for a checkup.

Some Common Dental Emergencies

  1. Unexplainable Toothache

Do you have a toothache that is giving you agonizing pain? It would be best if you were on your way to our dental office in Clearwater. Toothaches that cannot go away with time but increase their severity could signify oral complications such as tooth abscess or tooth decay. There are also those abnormal pains that one cannot pinpoint to a particular tooth. This type of pain is likely to be if one has central brain complications, cancer, or neuropathic pain.

  1. Swollen or Bleeding Gums

Are you experiencing random or excessive bleeding in your gums? Then visit our emergency dentist in Clearwater for treatment. While it may be normal for your gyms to sometime bleed during flossing or brushing, it is not okay for them to bleed every time while doing the same. Bleeding gums is usually a sign of serious dental complications such as cavities or gum diseases. In the cases of gum disease, deep root scaling or cleaning will be done to remove the infection.

  1. Swollen Jaw or Mouth

Several things can cause a swollen jaw. These reasons could be swollen lymph nodes, infections, or cancer. Dr. Annie Auletta recommends urgent care if the swollen jaw is accompanied by bad tastes, breathing difficulties, or a fever.

  1. Exposed Nerves

Exposed nerves do not need the dentist near you to confirm it is an emergency. However, when you try to eat or brush your teeth, the deliberating pain will force you to seek immediate care. A material known as cementum covers your tooth root nerves. When the material is weakened, your nerves become vulnerable to bacteria, plaque, and acid in your mouth. Gum diseases, smoking, rigorous brushing, tooth cracks, or teeth grinding are common causes that will expose your dental nerves.

Call Now Book Now

© 2025 Dental Arts Clearwater | Privacy Policy | Web Design, Digital Marketing & SEO By Adit

No Credit Check Payment Plan