Dental Emergency Cases in Children and Adults
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You should visit the emergency dentist in the case of a severe toothache, gingival abscess, and any trauma to the face that has led to discoloration of teeth, swelling, or fracture. Please keep in mind that a quick referral to the emergency dental clinic in the emergency case means the difference between saving and losing the tooth. Do not hesitate to visit the emergency dentist if you are experiencing a dental emergency. The most common dental emergencies are:
Table of Contents
Severe Toothache
Mild toothache can be controlled by rinsing the mouth with water and brushing. Sometimes the reason for a mild toothache is something that is stuck between the two teeth. Do not place aspirin on the teeth and gums to relieve toothache because it can cause severe damage to the gum tissue. Visit the emergency dentist right after.
Knocked-Out Tooth
If your permanent tooth is fallen off, try to place it into its socket and visit the emergency dentist without delay. If you cannot place the tooth in place, take the tooth from the crown (not the root) and place it in a container containing warm milk, warm salt water, or your saliva and immediately refer to an emergency dental clinic.
Broken Tooth
The best thing to do for a broken tooth is to rinse your mouth with warm water and put a pack of ice or a cold compress on your cheek. You can use ibuprofen tablets to reduce swelling of the face. If your tooth fracture is minor, it can be easily repaired, or if necessary, the emergency dentist can restore the enamel if there is no severe damage to the pulp.
Dental Abscess
An abscess is a festering mass usually caused by an infection and the spread of infectious bacteria from the root of the tooth to the tissues just below the tooth. It requires a very quick visit to the emergency dentist.
Tooth abscess generally occurs when the pulp becomes infected or swollen. The pulp is located deep in the tooth structure and extends from the crown to the root.
Suppose antibiotics are not effective in treating the abscess and the infection at the abscess site has severely damaged the tooth marrow or the bone beneath it. In that case, emergency root canal therapy may be needed to treat it. During the root canal procedure, the pulp’s damaged tissue is removed and replaced with a synthetic and healthy material.
Caries and Cavities
Various factors can cause tooth decay. In medical terms, dental cavities are caries caused by destructive forces that are applied to tooth structures, such as enamel and the inner layers of dentin.
These destructive forces can include repeated exposure of teeth to sugary and high-carbohydrate foods. If these substances remain in the space of your mouth and between your teeth due to not brushing and not flossing, they will provide favorable conditions for bacteria’s activity. The result of bacteria activity is the formation of colorless and dental plaque on the teeth’ surface. If cavities and tooth decay are not treated in time by the emergency dentist, it can lead to more severe problems that may require emergency root canal therapy.
