Mouth pain can put even the most upbeat person in a bad mood. It’s hard to concentrate on anything when your teeth, jaw, or gums are throbbing, and it’s practically impossible to eat or drink anything. When you say, “I have a dental emergency,” and it just can’t wait, here’s what you need to do.
Options for Emergency Dental Care
Not every dentist has emergency dental care available at their clinics. They may have a limited number of emergency slots or accept walk-ins similar to an emergency room. If your dentist doesn’t have an emergency option, you will need to look up other offices in your area. Some practices are entirely emergency care based, while others will accept new patients who have an emergency.
It’s hard to sort through these options when I have a dental emergency, so looking into your options ahead of time is best. You can also search on Google or another search engine using keywords such as an emergency dentist near me to get a list of providers in your area.
Deciding Whether I Have a Dental Emergency
Sometimes it’s hard to decide whether you have a true dental emergency or something that can wait. Since you typically have to pay a higher price for emergency appointments, you could find yourself hesitating.
A few dental issues that require care as soon as possible include:
- Infected teeth: Mouth infections are nothing to mess around with, as they can quickly become serious and infect other parts of your body. If you suspect that you have an infected tooth, can feel an abscess or have pus in your mouth, you’ll most likely need to see a dentist quickly to get antibiotics and treatment.
- Damaged and lost teeth: The longer you wait to see a dentist after tooth damage or loss, the less likely it is that you’re going to keep that tooth. You’re going to want to make a beeline to the emergency dentist so they can start working on keeping that tooth intact and healthy enough to go back in place.
- Broken jaw: You need to get care so that the jaw sets correctly, as well as an examination to determine whether you have other issues in your mouth as a result of this condition.
- Severe toothaches: Toothaches indicate a deeper problem, and if you find yourself unable to eat or drink, you’re going to need to get care quickly before you develop other health conditions.
What to Expect from a Dental Emergency Appointment
Your normal dentist may or may not offer emergency care, so you could find yourself reaching out to an emergency dentist in your area that provides appointments or walk-in care. The clinic will get you processed as quickly as possible so they can begin the diagnostic process. If you’re in pain or are dealing with an infection, you’ll receive medication to address those areas.
If you have a particularly severe injury, you may need to have dental surgery on short-notice or could potentially need to go to the emergency room for more care. Your dentist will evaluate you thoroughly to make sure that they understand what’s going on in your mouth and the steps needed to make you feel better.
Try to have someone else drive you to the appointment so that you don’t have to worry about getting yourself home while on painkillers or following emergency surgery. Ideally, this person would also be able to fill out your registration forms and answer medical questions so as not to have to worry about the paperwork.
Reach Out to Lovett Dental Piney Point Village
Dental emergencies can happen at any time and without warning. Lovett Dental Piney Point Village offers emergency dentistry in addition to several other services like:
If you say I have a dental emergency and need help, contact us at 832-242-2030 to make an appointment and get the fast care you need.
