Tips for Dental Emergencies

Our goal as your dental health care partner is to help you avoid dental discomfort whenever possible.
Like other types of emergencies, dental emergencies are never planned (and are never convenient). Following are a few tips for common emergencies, please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions.

Tips for Avoiding Dental Injuries and Emergencies:

#1 Don't postpone treatment.
Dental disease is progressive by nature, twinges of tooth pain or toothaches that seem to come and go are usually a sign of an underlying problem. Make a note of your symptoms, (how often they occur and what, if anything, sets them off) and Contact Premier Family Dentistry so that we can help you avoid a dental emergency.

#2 Dental trauma injuries can be reduced or prevented.
Use mouth guards for sports activities. Follow automobile safety regulations by using car seats for young children and seatbelts for older children and adults. Other common tooth injuries occur due to slips and falls at home (usually in the bathroom); handrails and non-slip rugs are measures you may want to consider.

Should a dental emergency occur, however, following are a few quick tips to help you through the initial response. And, remember, if a visiting family member or friend has a dental emergency, we are here to help, just give us a call!

Tips for dealing with Common Dental Emergencies:

Permanent Tooth Knocked Out

• If a permanent tooth is knocked out, speed in response is important

• Find the tooth and rinse it gently in cool water - do not scrub the tooth or use soap or other chemicals. Try to hold it by the crown and not the root tip.

• If possible, try to place the tooth back in the socket and hold it in place with clean gauze or wash cloth, or, tuck it into the cheek. If this is not possible, place the tooth in a clean container and moisten it with saliva, milk, or water.

• Call our office immediately.

Fractured or Chipped Tooth

• Try to save the tooth fragment.

• Rinse your mouth gently with warm water to remove any debris and help ease discomfort.

• Apply a cold compress to minimize swelling.

• Call our office immediately.

Toothache

• Apply a cold compress - do not apply heat or aspirin.

• You may want to take an over-the counter pain reliever until your appointment. Do not take aspirin; it is an anticoagulant and can cause excessive bleeding in a dental emergency.

• Call our office immediately. If swelling or an abscess is present, this is a serious infection. If after-hours, go to the nearest emergency room for immediate care.

Blow to head or Jaw Fracture

• Call 911 or go immediately to the emergency room; head injuries can be life-threatening.

The Mouth Body Connection

Research has proven that infections in the mouth can affect the health of the rest of the body; the bacteria associated with dental infections can also create complications for patients that have serious illnesses like diabetes or heart disease. If you have questions about your dental health or are currently experiencing a dental problem, we are always glad to help.

Please Contact Premier Family Dentistry of Alabaster with any concerns that you may have about your dental health.