A dental emergency can very quickly occur, even when your oral hygiene is absolutely impeccable: one or more teeth broken by accident, a sudden toothache, more or less abundant bleeding, a post-operative complication, or many other problems. There are many cases where you may need to see a specialist urgently, whether for severe pain relief or post-operative intervention. All emergencies or incidents that affect your mouth, teeth, tongue, oral mucosa (the skin in your mouth), and/or gums are considered by specialists to be dental emergencies. If you experience pain or trauma at a time when your usual dentist is not available (nights, weekends, busy times of year), you might need to be seen by an emergency dentist.
In many urgent cases, you should not be patient and contact a nearby emergency dental clinic as soon as you can. The specialists at the emergency dental clinic of your choice will be able to provide a quick solution to your problem by offering you the treatment best suited to your case. The chosen emergency dental clinic must not only be equipped with the necessary equipment and infrastructure to treat your problem (radiography, etc.), but must also be able to offer you emergency consultations by specialists.
In general, just like medical treatments, emergency dentistry is usually more expensive than regular dentistry. Of course, this depends on where you are seen and how complicated your problem is and what emergency treatment you will need.
Generally, we speak of a dental emergency in the following cases:
- One or more accidentally broken teeth (shock, sports activity, etc.)
- An unbearable toothache
- Any swelling of the cheeks or face
- Heavy and/or abnormal bleeding from the gums
- Heavy and/or abnormal bleeding following a tooth extraction (wisdom tooth, etc.)
- Loss of dental filling
- Breakage or loss of prosthesis
- Fever related to any dental problem (abscess, etc.)
The most common dental inflammation is pulpitis. It is characterized by severe pain. The discomfort can appear punctually, when you eat hot or cold food for example, or be long-lasting, without apparent cause and spread to the entire jaw. Inflammation of the dental pulp can be caused by untreated caries, shock, or bruxism (teeth grinding). Emergency management of pulpitis can limit damage to the tooth and relieve pain. Another pathology requiring immediate intervention is if you have a dental abscess. This tooth or gum infection is caused by bacteria. It causes the presence of pus in the mouth. The dental abscess causes very sharp pain but can also cause fever, fatigue and swelling in the face. It is necessary to have a dental abscess treated urgently in order to prevent the infection from spreading to the rest of the body.
Because of the costs associated with emergency dentistry, it is important to consider ways you can prevent or avoid dental emergencies. Some ways of doing so are:
- Good dental hygiene: the latter consists of carrying out daily cleaning of the teeth in order to minimize the risk of cavities. This also helps to safeguard the health of the gums.
- A check-up visit to the dentist. You should go to your dentist at least every 6 months. It will do a quick check of your teeth and its action can prevent the appearance of certain problems.
- A healthy and balanced diet: the health of the oral cavity depends in part on what is on your plate. Prioritize dishes rich in protein and calcium and reduce sugary products.
- Wearing a mouth guard. If you are an athlete, it is better to wear mouth protection to avoid trauma during shocks during matches.