Explaining Dental Emergencies and What to Do When You Have One
I'm Dr. Spencer Bense at Bense & Lopatofsky Dental. I'm here to talk about some of the most common questions I get about dental emergencies.
What is a dental emergency?
A dental emergency is when you have a toothache, pain, swelling, bleeding, or in cases of a traumatic event like a car accident or sporting injury where a tooth breaks. When that happens, it's excellent to call our office and make an appointment so we can help address your emergency, meet your needs, and hopefully get you out of pain.
When do you need to see the dentist instead of going to the emergency room?
The most common answer is it's best to see a dentist when the emergency involves your teeth. Unfortunately, many medical providers do not know much about the teeth and the mouth, and they're not able to do much for you, such as only prescribe an antibiotic or maybe a pain medicine. Most emergency rooms are not very well equipped to diagnose the problem and address the needs.
A dentist like myself would be the best option in cases where you have swelling, pain, bruising, or a broken tooth, such as an accident, because I can take an X-ray. I can identify which tooth is affected, and with my training as a dentist, I'm able to address that need effectively and present you with different options to address your needs and hopefully take you out of pain.
What are common types of dental emergencies?
The most common dental emergencies that I see are swelling, pain such as a toothache where you get an aching, throbbing sensation, tooth avulsion where a tooth comes out of the socket, and tooth fracture where a tooth or part of the tooth is broken. These are the most common types of dental emergencies that I encounter.
When do you need a dental extraction?
Extractions are used in cases where a tooth is not fixable. When, unfortunately, the tooth or the surrounding tissue around that tooth that holds it in place can no longer withstand it. In such cases, that tooth is removed.
Does that mean the tooth is going to be lost permanently? No. There are options to replace that tooth when it is lost, such as a dental implant, a bridge, or a removable partial denture. In the case of the loss of many teeth or all teeth, you could even have a denture or some type of hybrid denture with implants.
Why might you need an emergency root canal?
A root canal is done primarily when there's an infection in the tooth. When the tooth has a deep cavity that goes into the nerve and causes the tooth to abscess or swell and have an infection at the base. When that happens, a root canal is performed to clean out the infected tissue, clean out the nerve in the tooth, which alleviates the pain you're feeling and reduces the swelling.
Root canals might also be needed in cases where trauma occurs, such as getting hit. It's very common with young children who fall off slides, hit the ground, and usually bump their front teeth, especially when playing sports like baseball or football. Root canals are needed in cases where the nerve dies due to trauma to the tooth.
Do we offer same-day emergency dental care?
Yes, we do. My recommendation is anytime you're having any type of issue with tooth pain, bleeding, swelling, or trauma to your mouth, call your dentist. Call us here at Bense & Lopatofsky Dental at (570) 682-5050. If we're unavailable and out of the office, and it's a weekend, it provides our home phone number, which you can call, and I will call you back to schedule an appointment at a convenient time for you, myself, and my assistant, who will be necessary to help meet your needs.
If you’re looking for dental care you can trust, call us at (570) 682-5050 or email [email protected]. We’re here to help in any way we can to keep you smiling!