How To Handle Dental Emergencies
Dental emergencies can happen to you whether you are young or old. Accidents and injuries can happen at any time, so it's best to be prepared as to what you should do and how to handle the situation, especially when it involves your teeth or gums. See below for some dental emergencies and how you should handle them:
Toothache
Tooth pain happens to little ones that are teething, or even to adults with normal, healthy teeth. If you are an adult experiencing pain in your tooth, try to rinse your mouth out with warm water. If you have food in between your teeth, use floss to try to remove the food particle. If that doesn't help, try to take a pain reliever to alleviate the pain and call your dentist to get an appointment and have your tooth inspected.
If your young child is experiencing pain, it could be from teething. Give your child teething tablets or a pain reliever (with doctor's approval) and give your child a wet washcloth to chew on to feel better.
If your older child is feeling pain from a toothache, have your child floss and rinse his mouth out. Give a pain reliever and make an appointment with the dentist to be sure it isn't a cavity or something else.
Chipped Or Broken Tooth
A chipped or broken tooth can be painful, so if you are feeling pain from a broken or chipped tooth, make an appointment with the dentist right away. Save the piece of tooth in a glass of milk to see if the piece can be re-attached. If the broken or chipped tooth was a baby tooth, your dentist may choose not to repair the tooth since an adult tooth will take its place.
Knocked-Out Tooth
If the knocked out tooth was a baby tooth, you should still take your child to the dentist, but the tooth may not be put back in place. An adult tooth should be placed in a glass of milk and taken to the dentist right away to see if it can be put back in place. If you weren't able to locate the tooth, you should still go to the dentist to be sure you don't have an injury to your gums.
A dental emergency can happen at any time. Be sure to remain calm, try your best to locate the tooth or broken piece of tooth, and call your family dentist in any dental emergency.
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