When did you last schedule an emergency? While we can’t plan for our dental emergencies, we can prepare for them. The best way to prepare for an emergency is to know who to call. If you need emergency dental care, call the dental office of Erin M. Prach, DDS, your emergency dentist in Casper, for caring dental services. Our dedicated team is here to help you no matter what your emergency. We can help you stay calm, and get the assistance you need to keep smiling even while you’re making the trip to our office. In the meantime, let’s explore the best ways to handle common dental emergencies.
What is a Dental Emergency?
A dental emergency is any unexpected pain, injury, or trauma that occurs and affects your mouth or jaw. Some common dental emergencies that Dr. Parch usually sees are:
- Knocked out teeth
- Chipped, cracked or broken permanent teeth
- Lost, or broken crowns, inlays, onlays, veneers or fillings
- Soft tissue injuries to the lips, cheeks, gums or tongue
- Abscessed teeth
- Broken or dislocated jaw
Tips from an Emergency dentist in Casper
When it comes to dental emergencies, there are a few tips you can keep in mind that will give you the upper hand next time dental disaster happens unexpectedly:
Keep the area clean
If you’ve lost or chipped a tooth or sustained a soft tissue injury, it is essential to avoid infection by keeping the damaged area clean. For lost or chipped teeth, hold the cap of the tooth or piece of tooth while running it under warm water to remove debris. Try to retain any natural fibers still attached to the tooth. Swish warm water to clean the area around the damaged socket. Always try to return the tooth or piece of tooth to the socket it originates from. When this is not possible, store your tooth in whole milk. For soft tissue injuries, swish warm, salt water to clean the wound and jump start blood clotting.
Keep your blood clotting
It’s important to remember that injuries to the face, head and neck bleed more heavily than those on any other part of the body. This can be upsetting, but it doesn’t always mean that the injury is severe. Apply gentle pressure with a cool, damp, sterile cloth to slow the bleeding. If this isn’t effective in slowing the blood flow after five minutes, try holding ice to the bleeding area. If you are still unable to control the blood flow, call us right away or proceed to a nearby emergency room.
Keep the area cold
Cold will help you in two ways. It slows the flow of blood, and will help reduce inflammation which causes pain. Apply a cold compress to affected areas to minimize the damage until you can reach our office.
Call an Emergency Dentist in Casper That You Can Trust
When dental disaster strikes, stay calm and call your trusted dental team at the office of Dr. Prach. Our team will do whatever it takes to restore your smile to a natural, beautiful state. We will do our best to schedule you a same day appointment!