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Planning and Preparing for Dental Procedures: Your Questions Answered


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Planning and Preparing for Dental Procedures: Your Questions Answered

Making decisions about your smile can be confusing. Should you have a tooth pulled or get a root canal? Should you get adult braces or stick with a retainer? Should you use at-home whitening remedies or have your teeth professionally whitened? If questions like these are keeping you up at night, you've come to the right place. I used to stress out over routine dental procedures, and as a result, I did loads of research on everything dental-related. To help others, I'm using this blog as a place to collect, review and share what I've learned through the years. I hope you can use the information here to help you plan and prepare for your next dental appointment.

4 Important Signs That You Need to Visit an Emergency Dentist

As a human being, you can never know the next time you may fall sick or injure yourself. Therefore, it's advisable to always be prepared. This is the reason you have several insurance plans, ranging from health to property insurance. The same applies to your oral health. You're bound to have different oral emergencies arising from different circumstances. One of the worst things you can do is try ignore the pain by taking pain killers or using ad-hoc methods. Always schedule an emergency dental checkup in case of any form of dental emergency to avoid the issue from escalating. Below are instances that you need to schedule an emergency dental checkup.

1. Broken or Knocked-out Tooth

Breaking or knocking off your tooth can be one of the most painful injuries you can ever have. You'll definitely need the services of an emergency dentist to deal with the pain and discomfort.  Also, don't throw away the knocked-out tooth, as it may be placed back in your mouth, depending on the dentist's evaluation.

2. Persistent Tooth Ache

If you accidentally knock your teeth slightly or bite a hard surface accidentally, your tooth will tend to ache for some few minutes and stop. Such will not need an emergency dental checkup. However, when you have persistent and uncomfortable toothaches, don't wait for the day or night to end; schedule an appointment immediately.  Toothaches are a sign that something is wrong with your tooth, and it is sending signs to your brain informing you of the discomfort. There may be caused by exposed roots, infected gums, tooth decay or a tooth abscess. Do not try any random medication such as applying medication on the tooth, but visit an emergency dentist immediately.

3. Broken Jaw

When involved in an accident, you may get your jaw broken. Having a broken jaw leads to uncoordinated teeth movements and persistent jaw pain. In some cases, it may be fatal if the tongue is displaced, affecting your breathing pattern. Therefore, you need to visit an emergency dentist immediately.  Depending on the fracture or dislocation, an emergency dentist may recommend you for surgery to correct your jaw.

4. Losing a Crown or a Filling

If you have ever loosed a tooth due to some dental emergency or procedure, you definitely have a filling or a crown. As you conduct your normal day-to-day activities, your crown or filling may fall out. This should be taken as a dental emergency. Crowns or fillings falling off may be due to formation of another cavity in your tooth. Also, without the filler or crown, your tooth temperature will fluctuate, causing discomfort and even pain in the process. Therefore, it's advisable to visit an emergency dentist immediately.

In case of any dental emergencies resulting to pain and discomfort, it's advisable to rinse your mouth with warm salty water to numb the pain and keep off any pending infections. Don't attempt any other emergency treatments, but contact your emergency dentist for further advice.