Emergency & General Care: This or That of Dental Caries
You suddenly wake up one morning to realize that there’s a pain in your gums. Since it’s still mid-week, you aren’t whether you should visit the dentist or maybe wait till the end of the day. With the lockdown put under effect last year and the American Dental Association (ADA) announcing a nationwide halt on elective dental procedures and making only emergency dental care accessible to the public, you must be familiar with differences. You must be able to identify whether a dental concern needs to be addressed immediately and it can wait. Our expert dental surgeon and oral care therapist, Dr. Lucas shares a list of emergency and general dental caries in this blog.
The Urgent Emergency List
Loose/ knocked out tooth
A tooth can get dislodged and get loose due to many reasons that impact the gums, neighboring teeth, or even the jawbone tissue. Those reasons may include bone loss, receding gums, or even a blow across the face.
Large crack/ chip
broken/ cracked or chipped can cause a lot of trouble. It requires immediate care at once. Till the time you wait for your appointment, apply a cold compress. Although it is more of a visual concern, yet it can be hurtful while being unsightly.
Dental abscess
Dental abscess refers to the unnatural swelling of gums that is usually caused by a bacterial infection. If left untreated for long, this can enter the bloodstream to cause severe infection. Our certified DDS professional and member of the Academy of General Dentistry, of American Dental Association, dr. Lucas says that depending upon the severity of infection, a physician may recommend root scaling, root canal, or even extraction of the tooth.
Severe toothache
Although in most cases it can be treated with a nice session of flossing, yet there are chances that you might need to consult your dentist if the pain persists even after flossing. Gargling with warm water also helps with soothing the pain. If a cavity is detected, a filling or crown treatment can restore your tooth. The quicker you respond, the lesser is the invasiveness of the treatment.
Other urgent concerns may include bleeding, facial bone trauma, third-molar pain, pulpal inflammation, or any other post-surgery complications.
The Generic Dental Emergency List
Mild toothache
Usually, an OTC medicine just might do the trick such as Tylenol or ibuprofen. You can consult a dentist for your satisfaction but it doesn’t require immediate attention.
Cosmetic treatment
Any kind of cosmetic treatment such as teeth whitening, alignment, reshaping, among other procedures that dealing with aesthetics do not fall under the emergency category
Small chips/ cracks
These are very common. It may occur when you bite onto something hard and a part of your tooth gets cracked. Small chips aren’t painful as these occur on the surface layer of your tooth that is devoid of any nerves.
Dental cleaning
Your regular dental cleaning appointment doesn’t fall under the emergency category. This includes X-rays and routine checkups as well.
Restorative procedures such as treating crown/ filling/ bridge damage
Although these are some common mishaps experienced by people, yet they aren’t classified as dental emergencies.
Wrapping Up
It is important to remember that this was a regularization made keeping the COVID-19 restrictions in mind to minimize outdoor activities. Whether a dental caries is an emergency or not is a matter of judgment. In case you are undergoing a dental situation and are not able to decide whether to treat it as an emergency or not, talk to our experts at (724)-547-0690 for a specific and effective consultation.