Dr. Mark Lansdell
In my last blog, I wrote about preventing dental issues and maximizing dental insurance. But, what happens when despite your best preventive efforts, or due to something entirely unforeseen, you end up with a dental emergency while living in or visiting Guelph?
First of all – call us if you have a dental emergency. As a dentist in Guelph, I can help you with a number of dental emergencies and have you back to enjoying your life. In some cases, I, or any member of my compassionate team can give you tips to help get by. In others we can help you get out of pain until a permanent solution is found.
In this month’s blog, I’ll offer some tips about what to do between your phone call to my conveniently located Guelph dental practice and when you arrive for your appointment.
If you have a dental emergency and need a dentist in Guelph, I am here for you. Here are some tips to help you in the meantime.
Toothache
From a constant dull ache to a severe mind-consuming pain, toothaches are one of the most common reasons for emergency dental visits. There are many concerns that can cause a toothache, so give us a call to explain the pain and book an appointment. To ease the pain, take an over-the-counter pain medication as tolerated and always following the package directions. For further relief you may find that a cold compress or icepack applied to the area of makes you feel better. A word of warning. Never put pain medication directly on your tooth.
Broken or Chipped Tooth
First – don’t worry. A broken or chipped tooth can almost always be saved, so just give us a call and let us know what happened. Depending on how big the break or chip is, I can either use white filling material (called composite bonding) to build up the tooth or fill in the crack. Larger breaks may require a root canal and a crown. It all depends on your personal situation.
Knocked-out Tooth
This a dental emergency. Call now. You must act quickly. In many cases a knocked-out tooth can be saved. If a lost tooth is placed back in the socket within 10 minutes to two hours, it has a fair chance of taking root again. If the tooth looks clean, gently handle it by the crown (the part that sits above the gumline) and place the root back inside the tooth socket. If you can’t get it back in the socket, or if there is a chance it could be swallowed, place the tooth in a glass of milk and bring it along to your appointment.
If you are bleeding heavily and it won’t stop, go directly to the nearest hospital emergency room.
Badly Bitten Lip or Tongue & Bleeding
As in all cases of bleeding use a clean cloth or gauze and apply pressure until the bleeding stops. Carefully inspect your teeth for chips or breaks and then apply ice to keep the swelling down. If there is dental damage, give us a call. As you read above – we can probably save your tooth. But your first priority is to stop the bleeding. If you can’t, get to a hospital emergency room right away.
Something Stuck In Your Teeth
If you feel like something is stuck in your teeth and using dental floss won’t dislodge it give us a call. DO NOT use anything sharp or pointy to get it out. This could damage your gums and teeth and create a much bigger issue.
Lost Filling
Give us a call to set up an appointment as soon as possible and place a piece of sugarless gum in the space where the filling was.
And as always – if you have any questions about whether something is an emergency, call us. We can either put your mind at ease or book you in for an appointment. Either way, I’m here to help make you smile.