Dental emergencies can happen in an instance or take several days or months to manifest.

How do we recognize a dental emergency

First, make sure you can identify a dental emergency.

• A severe toothache or discomfort in the mouth
• Spontaneous bleeding
• Painful gums
• A loose adult tooth
• A pus discharging swelling
• Trauma to the teeth
• Bad taste in your mouth, especially metallic or blood
• A non-healing ulcer or an enlarging white or red patch inside the mouth

These signs with or without pain may signal a possible dental emergency. It’s essential to contact your Dr. Ostromecki  as soon as possible once you recognize them.

Let’s dive into the things you should do in the face of a dental emergency.

• It’s important to be calm, think clearly, and be wise about what you are doing.
• Use some over-the-counter pain medications to control severe pain.
• Foment the swollen site with warm water to reduce the swelling.
• Rinse away the blood and apply pressure using a clean piece of cloth or a cotton pellet to stop the bleeding.
• Always try to find the pieces of a broken tooth or the knocked-out tooth after trauma and bring them to the Good Dentist immediately. Make sure to bring them inside a container filled with the patient’s saliva or milk to keep them hydrated while transportation. If the tooth is vital your dentist may be able to restore the tooth pieces and put the tooth back in place.
• When the whole tooth comes out by accident, clean it first under running water gently but do not touch the root end.
• Visit The Good Dentist when you notice some obvious changes in your mouth so that Dr. Ostromecki can act immediately and prevent any future damage.

As well there are a lot of things that you shouldn’t do in the case of a dental emergency.

• Don’t panic and do unnecessary things because it may cause more damage.
• Don’t use aspirin for dental pain especially if there’s bleeding because aspirin increases bleeding.
• Don’t bother to take knocked-out baby teeth to Dr. Ostromecki since they cannot be placed again in the mouth. Give them to the tooth fairy instead.
• Don’t put a knocked-out tooth in a bucket with ice, in your pocket, or a zip-lock bag as those mediums may reduce the vitality and the integrity of the tooth. Human saliva is the best medium for the transportation of a tooth or pieces.
• Never touch the root end of a knocked-out tooth because if the soft tissues in the root get damaged there’s no point in bringing the natural tooth to the dentist.
• Don’t ignore toothaches. Even if some toothache suddenly goes completely numb you should meet your dentist and describe the pain before the condition turns into something serious.
• Never ignore a small non-healing ulcer for weeks or a white and/or reddish patch because they might indicate pre-cancer signs. It’s important to have a professional examination if you notice something unusual inside the mouth so that Dr. Ostromecki can intervene as early as possible before it’s too late.

If you’re experiencing a dental emergency call us right away at 262-538-0892 so we can take care of you immediately.