Signs That Your Tooth Needs To Be Looked At ASAP
If you have a dental problem that develops over the weekend, then you may want to wait until Monday to deal with the issue. While this is something that you may want to do if you have a cavity or a dull pain in your tooth, some situations call for the assistance of an emergency dentist, such as Bradley T Piotrowski DDS MSD LLC. If you are unsure if you are experiencing an emergency, keep reading to learn about some clear signs that you should be seeking out dental help as soon as possible.
You Have A Fever
If you notice that one of your teeth has become extremely painful with throbbing sensations or sharp pains coming from the tooth or the gums, then you may have started to develop an infection. If the pains have progressed into a situation where the jaw is swollen and the gums are red, then the infection has progressed. You will likely develop a fever at this point, and this is when you need to seek out emergency care.
Fevers that accompany infections are typically low-grade. A low-grade fever is one that is around 100 degrees Fahrenheit or a bit lower. This type of fever signifies that the infection has progressed enough that the immune system is taking action to try to eliminate the difficulty. Large accumulations of bacteria must develop before this happens. Internal tooth infections, abscesses, severe gum infections, and even bone infections are a few types of problems that may have developed and caused a fever.
When a fever develops, you will need to start taking antibiotics. If you do not do this soon, then the infection can spread and you will experience a great deal more pain and discomfort.
Your Tooth Is Bleeding
If you fall or experience a jarring hit to the mouth during a sporting event, then you may develop some sort of dental trauma. Trauma to the mouth will often appear with bleeding as the soft tissues are damaged. There are hundreds of small capillaries in the gums that can and will bleed if they become damaged. You should understand that most gum injuries will stop bleeding within about 10 to 15 minutes depending on severity.
However, if you notice bleeding and see it coming from the tooth itself, then this indicates a very serious problem. Teeth that bleed are often ones that are severely cracked or chipped. The blood comes directly from the tooth pulp, which is the living portion of the tooth. When the pulp is damaged in any way, it cannot repair itself. The pulp and root of the tooth must be removed during a root canal treatment, and an emergency root canal is what needs to happen. Typically, a dentist will work with you to restore the tooth with the help of a crown too, but you will need to wait for this so that the crown can be constructed for you. In the meantime, a temporary crown will be cemented over the damaged tooth.
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