Dental emergencies can cause a lot of stress and pose a potentially dangerous problem for your oral health. When dental problems are left untreated for too long, they can result in permanent damage to the teeth and the need for more serious and expensive dental care in the future. It is important to seek immediate medical attention from emergency dental services.
Most Common Dental Emergencies
1. Unexpected tooth pain
If the pain in your tooth is so severe that it prevents you from eating, you may need to see an emergency dentist. Many factors can contribute to the development of a toothache, such as:
- Deterioration of the teeth
- An infection with the gums
- Excessive swelling
- Defected filling
- Bruised tooth
The treatment for a toothache varies depending on the underlying cause, from simple fillings to root canals to tooth extractions.
Regular dental visits are likely to prevent most of the conditions that lead to toothaches in most cases. Emergency dental care suggests dental cleanings and examinations every six months to prevent such oral health problems.
2. Knocked-out or loose teeth
When a facial impact causes a tooth to become loose or fall out, immediate urgent dental care should be sought after the accident. A loose tooth should be kept in its socket as much as possible to prevent it from falling out while it is loose. A simple way to do this is to bite down on the tooth to secure it gently.
Whenever a tooth has been knocked out, it is important to locate the missing tooth as soon as possible. Upon finding the missing tooth, the crown should only be used to handle and rinse it, if necessary. As a rule of thumb, a missing tooth can be preserved by either placing it back in the socket and biting down on it as you would for a loose tooth or doing one of the abovementioned things.
As a second option, you can store the bits of tooth fragments in a glass of milk or water, much like you would if you had a chipped tooth fragment.
3. Bleeding Gums
Is there bleeding in your gums? There is no reason to worry when you experience bleeding gums while flossing. In some cases, oral bleeding may indicate gum disease and, if untreated by an emergency dentist in Antwerp, may result in permanent tooth loss. As you can see from the following list of signs, bleeding, swollen gums, redness, and pain are all evidence of advanced gum disease.
As a result of plaque building up between teeth, gum disease occurs. How can this scenario be prevented? Make sure you visit a dentist for dental care at least once every six months or yearly, depending on your age. Maintaining a daily oral hygiene routine, such as brushing and flossing, is also essential. There is no other way to prevent the build-up of tartar which leads to plaque build-up, than by flossing.
4. Abscess
Abscesses are serious infections. Infections often begin around the roots of the afflicted tooth or in the spaces between the teeth as a result of tooth decay. When left untreated, the symptoms of this disease can spread to other parts of your body, causing damage to the soft tissues surrounding your teeth. The first thing you should do if you notice painful swelling in your gum area that is the size of a pimple is to schedule an emergency dental appointment with your dentist as soon as possible.
There is a possibility that you might be able to ease the pain by using a salt-water solution to rinse your mouth, which will help draw out some of the bacteria and help ease the pain. Throughout the day, repeat this several times until you can make a dentist appointment.
5. Lost Filling
You are more susceptible to infection and soreness without a filling as you have a hole in your tooth. Hard foods or loosening can cause you to lose your cavity. Keep the filling for your dentist if you don’t want to swallow it.
If there is a missing filling, the dentist must address it to prevent food and bacteria from getting into it. If you have a cavity that needs filling, you can buy a temporary filling at your local pharmacy to cover the hole and keep it clean until you can see your dentist for a filling or crown.
6. Chips or Cracks
Teeth chips and cracks can occur while biting down on hard objects, chewing on things other than food, or due to an accident. Teeth chipped or cracked by grinding, or clenching are also more likely to occur. A trip to the emergency dentist near me is recommended if your tooth is chipped or cracked. Bring tooth fragments to your emergency dental appointment after rinsing them, preserving them in milk or water, and preserving them in your mouth.
How Can I Avoid Common Dental Emergencies?
1. Take good care of your oral health
The best course of action is, of course, to take preventative measures in this regard. By practicing good oral hygiene, you can keep your teeth in good shape for a long time. Good oral hygiene is important beyond simply brushing and flossing your teeth every day. As part of this process, you should also be aware of what you eat. The best way to prevent tooth decay is to avoid sugary foods and hard candy. Also, chewing tough meat can result in broken teeth.
2. Avoid Chewing on Non-Food Items
The problem with breaking bad habits is that sometimes it is easier said than done, but there are ways in which these habits can be redirected slowly. Several oral fixations can lead to chipped teeth, such as biting the fingernails and chewing on writing instruments. If you want to avoid biting your nails, you may want to keep your hands busy with some other activity in order to keep them from becoming tense. It would also be a good idea to chew sugarless gum when you feel the urge to chew something when you need to.
3. Wear a Mouthguard
Sports-related injuries can cause broken teeth. Wearing a mouthguard is essential when participating in contact sports. To keep that smile of yours intact, you should make it a habit to wear a mouth guard before each game to prevent any injuries to your teeth.
Need A Dental Emergency Consultation Near You?
When you experience pain in your tooth, it’s time to seek out trusted dental care. There are several causes of dental emergencies, including riding a bike, playing outside, and being involved in work accidents.
You should know of some dental emergencies such as dental pain, injuries to the tooth, infected teeth, or teeth that have been knocked out, which are some of the most common ones that can take you to a doctor’s ER. If left untreated, a mouth, head, and neck infection have a high risk of spreading to other parts of the body, resulting in more serious health complications. Injuries of this type should not be ignored and treated as soon as possible.
If you visit Euro Dent for a consultation, you can help preserve the current state of your teeth by making an appointment with our leading emergency dentist in Brussels. There is a possibility that injuries that may seem minor to you may be affecting the living tissues inside of your mouth, and the only way to prevent further damage is to seek treatment as soon as possible.
