What is a Dental Emergency?
A dental emergency is any type of pain or injury caused by physical trauma or infection that requires immediate attention. This can include an infected tooth, severe tooth pain, bleeding, or any accident involving your teeth, lips, gums, cheek, or jaw.
If you experience a dental emergency, it’s important to contact our Nashua dental office immediately at (603) 882-3001. We’re here to help you, any time, any day. When your dental health is at risk, we’ll do everything we can to address the problem as soon as possible.
How to Treat a Dental Emergency
While dental emergencies are rare, they can happen, and it’s important to know how to manage common situations. We have put together easy, patient-friendly dental emergency instructions on what to do if you don’t require immediate care.
If you’ve chipped, cracked, or broken a tooth, contact our Nashua office as soon as possible to prevent additional damage and infection. Collect any tooth fragments in a zip-lock bag with milk to keep it/them moist. Using lukewarm water, rinse your mouth to keep the area clean until you’re able to come in. We will assess the damage and determine the best way to restore your tooth back to optimal health.
If you’re experiencing pain that’s not controlled by ibuprofen or Tylenol, it could be a sign of a greater complication than a minor toothache or jaw discomfort. If the pain continues, call our office so we can identify the problem and alleviate your pain.
If you’re experiencing swelling, it’s vital that you contact us immediately. In certain cases, swelling, especially if under the tongue, can be dangerous. If there’s difficulty breathing or the swelling makes it difficult to swallow, you should contact 911. These conditions can be life-threatening in certain circumstances.
Having a tooth knocked out is a common dental injury that needs immediate dental care. If possible, find the tooth, and most importantly, DO NOT TRY TO CLEAN IT!
If it’s still in the mouth, try to push it gently back into place. If it’s not in the mouth, it can be placed back into the socket (dirt and all!), or put the tooth in a zip-lock bag or another container with milk (or your own saliva) to preserve it.
Either way, the best way to save a knocked-out tooth is to get it back in the socket as quickly as possible. It’s vital that the tooth be replaced in the socket quickly to maximize the potential for healing. Depending on the severity of the damage, we will try to save it by reattaching it or re-inserting it.
If you’ve cut part of your mouth or lip, apply firm pressure with a gauze or clean cloth to ease the bleeding. We suggest using a cold compress to help relieve pain and minimize any swelling of the affected area. If the bleeding continues after 15 minutes, contact us for immediate care and we’ll thoroughly examine the area.