What is Urgent Dental Care?
Urgent dental care, also known as emergency dental care, is focused on treating any dental emergency. Whether it’s a cracked, broken, or knocked out tooth, an object lodged in between your teeth, or a severe cut to your gums, cheek, lips, or tongue, urgent dental care is there to help you.
Do you have a persistent toothache? Relief is around the corner. A good urgent dental care center will be able to handle almost any dental emergency, but you can help this along by practicing some preventative measures and smart first aid practices.
Prevent a Dental Emergency
The best way to avoid a dental emergency is by preventing one in the first place. Here’s some advice that can help:
Don’t chew on hard candy or ice | Chewing on hard things, such as candy, ice, popcorn kernels, and, yes, even bone, can crack a tooth.
Don’t use toothpicks to remove food | The safest way to remove food from between your teeth is with floss. A toothpick can break and become lodged between your teeth, causing damage to both your tooth and your gums.
Use custom mouthguards when playing sports | Custom mouthguards are made from molds of your teeth. This can help prevent breaks and tooth loss, especially in high-contact sports.
Don’t use your teeth as scissors | If you need to open a bag, cut off a piece of tape, or clip your fingernails, use scissors or nail clippers.
First Aid Tips
Some emergencies are unavoidable. It’s important to take sound first aid measures before you head to a dentist.
If you lose a tooth, keep it moist | If at all possible, try and place your tooth back in the socket. If you can’t, keep the tooth under your tongue or in-between your cheek and gums. See your dentist immediately.
If your tooth is cracked, rinse with warm water | A warm water rinse will clean the affected area. Follow it up with a cold compress to your cheek and you’ll help keep the swelling down.
If you have an object stuck between your teeth, try to remove it with floss | Use dental floss gently, to avoid cutting your gums. Avoid any sharp, pointed tools, because this can cause a bigger emergency. If you can’t remove the object, see your dentist right away.
If you have a severe toothache, rinse with warm water | For toothache relief, use a warm water rinse to clean your mouth. If there’s food stuck, gently floss the area. DO NOT put aspirin directly on the tooth or gum.
If you have a severe cut to tongue, cheek, lip, or gums, rinse with warm water | Follow the warm water rinse with a cold compress and see your dentist immediately.
Once you’ve taken the right first aid steps, it is important that you go to a trusted urgent dental care practice. Here at Providence Dental, we’re ready to meet your dental emergency needs. Don’t wait. Call now.