Emergency Dentist

What constitutes a dental emergency?

Dental emergencies aren’t necessarily life threatening, but they can cause a lot of pain and require immediate attention. If you’ve damaged your teeth or you are experiencing some discomfort due to ongoing dental problems, you should consider making an appointment to see the emergency dentist, particularly if the pain doesn’t lessen after a few hours.

A knock or sudden impact can damage the structure of the teeth or leave the inner pulp vulnerable to infection, this should be looked at immediately, as it can lead to lots of other problems down the road. A fracture or crack might not be painful straight away, but if you notice any changes in the structure of your teeth, you should see a dentist as soon as you can – there could be some underlying damage that needs treating.

Chips caused by an accident could constitute an emergency, but not for health reasons. Some cosmetic reconstruction or composite filling might be necessary to fix badly damaged enamel in order to restore the original smile. Lots of people who chip their teeth are more concerned with their appearance than with the pain, emergency dentists can usually fix these problems in a short amount of time.

Generally speaking, if you’re in pain or you think there is something wrong with your teeth, you can judge this to be an emergency and make an appointment to get it assessed. Dentists at the Pearl Dental Clinic in London are on hand twenty-four hours a day to help you out with any problems or concerns.

What sort of problems can emergency dentists help with?

Firstly, they won’t be available for an ordinary check-up – you’ll have to make those with your regular dentist – and they aren’t likely to provide cosmetic services, such as teeth cleaning or whitening, so don’t try and make an appointment if that’s what you’re after. Emergency dentists are available for sudden problems such as broken or knocked-out teeth and other painful developments like abscesses or loose fillings. Injuries to the mouth are also common complaints that they can help with, such as a bitten tongue or cheeks, and scratches to the lips or gums.

I’ve got a dental emergency, what should I do?

The first thing to do is call your dentist. If the emergency has occurred outside working hours you will have to call a twenty-four hour surgery to assist, you can either do this by contacting them directly or calling NHS direct to put you in touch with the nearest emergency dentists office. Make sure you explain to the dentist exactly what condition it is that’s causing you problems; this allows them to assess how urgent your case is and to prepare for your arrival if you need to make your way to the surgery. How you deal with the problem before a dentist can help you depends on what the issue is to begin with, don’t try and perform any surgery on yourself, it will only cause you more pain.

Here are a few common cases and advice on what to do if you find yourself in situations like these:

Knocked-out teeth – This is something everyone dreads, but if you manage to get the damaged tooth to the dentist in under an hour, they may be able to reattach and cement it into place. You need to clean the tooth gently, but be careful not to scrub away any soft tissue that might still be attached, then put it in a cup of milk or if you don’t have milk, warm water, this is to keep the tooth alive until it can be fitted back in the socket. In this kind of circumstance you’re probably going to be feeling quite a lot of pain, so numb the area with ice to keep the swelling down – you should also apply some gauze to the empty socket to stop the bleeding.

Broken teeth – Find the pieces of the broken tooth and hold onto them, the dentist may be able to fit it back together with some filling material, but don’t try and pull out any shards that may be remaining in the socket, it’s up to your surgeon to judge whether this needs to be extracted or if some of the root can be saved. Again, you should ice the area to help with the pain and swelling.

Loose fillings – Even metal fillings aren’t unbreakable, a strong impact can break them loose and this has to be dealt with as soon as possible to stop bacteria getting into the exposed cavity. If you can’t get to the dentist straight away, protect your tooth by taking some sugar free gum and pressing it over the damaged area, this creates a temporary shield to until the filling can be replaced.

Loose crowns – Crowns are usually cosmetic and shouldn’t cause you a great amount of pain if they have come loose, however, in some cases they are being used to protect a damaged tooth and should be replaced immediately. If the crown has come out in one piece and isn’t cracked or chipped, it shouldn’t take too long for the dentist to cement it back in place.

Abscesses – If you suffer from abscesses it’s probably a safe assumption that you’ve familiar with dental problems. Infections like this usually take some time to develop and may be the result of questionable hygiene or previous dental surgery that has gone wrong. Whatever the reason, they can be very painful and difficult to deal with. Pus-filled swellings and inflamed gums are a sure sign of growing abscesses, and you’re more than likely to be prescribed some antibiotics to fight the infection. Whilst you’re waiting to see the dentist, rinse your mouth out with warm salt water to try and cleanse the area and dull the pain a little.

Most emergency dental surgeries will be able to fit you in within twenty-four hours, sooner in most cases, so you shouldn’t have to suffer too long before seeing a healthcare professional. If you’re experiencing severe pain, take some over the counter painkillers, but remember to stick to the recommended dosage, and make your dentist aware that you have done so, in case you’re in need of major surgery.