Top 10 Coronavirus Tips for Dental Emergencies
Many dental treatments and procedures can probably wait until the coronavirus crisis to have them attended to. However, the same can’t be said of dental emergencies which as covered in detail over at frontlineer.com, usually come with tremendous pain and even swelling and bleeding, with there being a high risk of one losing their natural permanent teeth if not attended to. How does one go about things when experiencing a dental emergency with the current coronavirus crisis? Well, this article will look to help answer this question by highlighting 10 tips for the same.
Call your dental practice
The first thing you should do when experiencing a dental emergency during the current coronavirus crisis is call your dental practice. If they are still offering dental services for dental emergencies, you can have an appointment set up to have your issue addressed. However, if they are not in operation, chances are, as covered over at frontlineer.com, that they have left behind tips and instructions for their patients to follow in case of an emergency on their voicemail. This will also help you in your bid of finding services for your dental emergency.
Go to the ER if the situation is serious
If you have suffered a bad dental trauma and experiencing severe bleeding in your mouth or have suffered severe cuts as far as the soft tissues in the mouth go, or are experiencing any other serious dental emergency such as an abscessed tooth, another tip is to go to the ER, like the highly rated frontlineer.com, to be attended to, particularly if you can’t access the services of your dentist. While ER physicians will most likely not be able to address any underlying dental issues, they will at least help stem any pain, swelling and bleeding. Remember, only got to the ER if your situation is serious as ERs are strained enough already due to the coronavirus crisis.
Look for dental practices practicing teledentistry
As per discussions on the same over at frontlineer.com, to continue serving their patients, there are those dental practices that are switching to teledentistry, which offers services virtually and is therefore safer. In case of a dental emergency, you should search for and reach out to these dental practices in your area as through teledentistry, they will be able to triage and evaluate your condition to be able to decide if you need to be brought in for treatment, all from the comfort of your home.
Don’t bring anyone to your appointment
If you find a dental practice that is still open and you get an appointment booked, another tip that you should keep in mind during the current coronavirus crisis is to go alone to the appointment and don’t bring anyone unless instructed otherwise. This is aimed at ensuring that the number of people in the dental office are kept at a minimum, making it easier to control the spread of the virus.
Tips for parents
On a related note, if your child is the one who has the appointment for a dental emergency, then another tip by the gurus over at frontlineer.com is to ensure that you bring them and them alone to the scheduled appointment. If you have other children, find someone to look after them while you are away and don’t bring them with you to the dental office also. This is also aimed at reducing the number of people at the dental office which will help in controlling the spread of the coronavirus.
Wait in the vehicle until the dentist is ready to see you
Another important tip to consider as far as dental emergencies during the current coronavirus crisis go is to skip the waiting lounge and just wait in your car in the parking lot until the dentist and their team are ready to see you. As per discussions on the same over at frontlineer.com, most of the dental practices that remain open are actually practicing this strategy, but you should take it upon yourself to do the same even if not told. This will help in social-distancing which is key in the fight against COVID-19.
Ask the dental practice what measures they have in place to screen patients
When looking for a dental practice to have your dental emergency attended to, another tip is to ask them for more information on the screening measures they have in place as far as their patients are concerned. You want to go to a dental office which has got stringent measures as far as the screening of their patients go to ensure your safety. As per the subject mater experts over at frontlineer.com, these include checking of the temperature of patients at check-in, asking for information on their history of travel among others.
Ask the dental practice what measures they have in place to sanitize their office
As per discussions on the same over at frontlineer.com, you also want to go to a dental office that is sanitizing their offices regularly and comprehensively. You should ask them the measures they have in place to stop the spread of their virus which should include deep-cleaning of their office, extensive use of protective gear or PPEs, any protective barriers they are using during the dental procedures and so forth.
Check out local emergency dentists
If your dentist has closed their office or is handling COVID-19 patients, then you should look for a local emergency dentist when looking for treatment for your dental emergency during the current coronavirus crisis. Chances are that emergency dentists continue operating, to cater for serious cases. Do an online search for local emergency dentists and see if you can find one who is available.
Try to see if your situation can be handled at home
As per discussions on the same over at frontlineer.com, for safety purposes, most dental practices are only seeing patients who are experiencing serious symptoms such as severe pain and swelling. As a tip for dental emergencies in the current coronavirus crisis, you should try out home remedies to see if your situation can be controlled at home, at least for the time being. Call your dentist and ask them for tips on how to do so. If you really need to be seen, they will set up an appointment, if not, they will help you manage your situation at home until you can be seen.
The above discussion only begins to scratch the surface as far as this topic goes, with there being more on the same to be uncovered over at frontlineer.com.
