Emergencies in dentistry can occur at any time. Knowing when to get emergency dental care is crucial for maintaining your oral health. While some dental problems can wait for a routine visit, others need to be treated right away to avoid infection or more damage. If you’re experiencing severe pain, swelling, or a dental injury, our emergency dentist in Livonia is ready to provide prompt and effective care to restore your smile and relieve discomfort.
Before you visit the dentist, our Livonia Family Smiles doctors want to help you understand what constitutes a dental emergency, symptoms to look out for, and how to handle urgent situations!
Signs You Need Emergency Dental Care
- Toothache: First, give our dentist a call. Describe your symptoms and request an appointment as soon as you can. Then treat the pain. Take the most effective over-the-counter pain reliever. At the location of the sore tooth, place an ice pack against your face. Avoid placing a hot water bottle, heating pad, or other heat source on your jaw.
- Chipped or Broken Tooth: Our doctor might be able to replace the knocked-out tooth if it is an adult (or permanent) tooth. However, you have to act fast. The tooth has a good chance of re-establishing its roots if it is replaced within ten minutes. The odds are slim after two hours.
- Badly Bitten Lip or Tongue: Apply pressure to the bleeding area of the mouth if there is any. To do this, use a clean cloth. Use an ice pack to reduce swelling if the lip is swollen. Go straight to the hospital’s emergency room if the bleeding doesn’t stop.
- Object Stuck In Between Teeth: First, try carefully and gently removing the object with dental floss. You risk cutting your gums or scratching the surface of your teeth if you use a pin or other sharp, pointy object to poke between your teeth. Consult our dentist if you are unable to remove the object.
- Lost Filling: In the area where the filling was gone, place a piece of softened sugar-free chewing gum. This will provide temporary protection for the area. Call us to book an appointment with our doctor ASAP!
How You Can Prevent Dental Emergencies At Home
For Adults: To lessen the possibility of harming your teeth, lips, cheek, and tongue while playing sports or engaging in leisure activities, wear a sports mouthguard. Ask our doctor about a customized one to protect your smile. Avoid chewing on hard foods like popcorn kernels, ice, or hard candies as they can cause tooth cracking.
For Children: When learning to walk, children frequently fall. Look for loose teeth, fractures, cracks, or missing teeth, and if you notice any of these, take your child to our practice. To help prevent tooth injuries, ask our doctor about a mouthguard if they participate in sports.
Our soothing and understanding dental team is here when you need us! Call Livonia Family Smiles right away when an emergency strikes!