Most people tend to deal with dental issues such as injury from home without any expert input. Unfortunately for a significant number in this lot, they do not know the right procedure on how to deal with dental emergencies in ways that will not cause them further harm. Dealing with a dental emergency in the right way would be very helpful in mitigating the damage caused to your teeth or gums and even consequently reduce any arising treatment cost. Dental emergencies, however, vary in nature, each of which is dealt with in their unique ways. Here is a compilation of different but common medical emergencies and how to deal with them accordingly.
Dealing With Dental Emergencies
Knocked-Out Tooth
For a knocked out tooth, it is imperative that you handle it by the crown and avoid touching the root. Keep the root clean by delicately rinsing in water without scrubbing to maintain any attached tissue fragment that could be utile in the re-attachment of the tooth. If possible, you can try and re-attach the tooth yourself, and make sure it is placed facing the right way but do not force it in. If reinsertion does not work or you just do not want to take chances, you should see a dentist and have the tooth reinserted within an hour of being knocked out. You will need to visit a medical facility with fast working experts who are good at what they do, to do it quickly and well; Frontline ER is one such facility. During the period before you get it to the dentist, it is imperative that you keep the tooth moisturised in places such as; milk, a cup of water with a hint of salt, the space between your gum and cheek or use a tooth preservation product such as Save-a-tooth.
Broken Tooth
Begin by rinsing your mouth using warm water to wash out any broken pieces. In case there is bleeding you should apply a bit of gauze until the bleeding stops. Then put a cold compress on the outside of your mouth around the affected region to relieve the pain and keep it from swelling. Then you seek out a dentist as soon as possible.
Object Stuck Between Teeth
In this case, you could start by using dental floss to try and gently remove the object from your teeth. Avoid using a sharp object, lest you hurt your gums or dangerously scar your tooth surface. Instead, seek a dentist’s attention.
Toothaches
First, rinse your mouth using warm water and thoroughly clean it out. Then use dental floss to remove any food particles stuck in between your teeth carefully. In case there is swelling, the remedy is a cold compress applied on the outer cheek around the affected region. Some people are prone to the mistake of putting aspirin around the gum of the aching tooth. Aspirin, as well as any other painkiller, may burn the gum tissue around the tooth causing a second dental issue. A follow-up dentist appointment should be your next procedure after getting the short term pain remedies above.
Breeched Braces and Wires
The breaking of brace wires can be quite discomforting in the mouth in instances where it is poking your cheek, tongue or gum. When affected by such a dental emergency where the wire is sticking out of the bracket or band and is poking one of the interior regions of your mouth; you can use the non-pointy end of your pen or pencil to shove it back in position gently. You can also opt for a small cotton ball, orthodontic wax or a piece of gauze to cover the sharp end if you cannot position it using a pen. All these are temporary procedures before going to see your orthodontist. Never attempt to cut the wire, to avoid casualties such as swallowing or choking on the cut wire.
Abscess
The abscess is an infection that affects the space between the gum and the tooth or around the root of a tooth. If left unchecked and promptly dealt with this disease can immensely damage the gum tissues and surrounding teeth and can potentially spread to other parts of the body. Signs that you have abscess include a painful pimple-like swelling on the gum. To ease the pain and draw the pus from the blister towards the surface you should rinse your mouth with a slightly salted cup of water several times a day. However, you should see a dentist as soon as possible to avoid severe oral health complications.
So conclusively, you should realize by now that different dental emergencies all require unique remedies to help alleviate pain and mitigate the risk of further dental injury. You should have also understood from this article that specific layman procedures may put your oral health at additional risk instead of the alternative. One remedy that is, however, common to all these dental emergencies is visiting a dentist as soon as you can. The dentist should be professional and efficient at dealing with crises; Frontline ER Dallas Emergency Clinic is a facility with such personnel.