Dental Emergencies
If you have a dental emergency, call us immediately so we can see you as soon as possible. In the meantime, here are some tips for common dental emergencies:
Toothache
- Rinse with warm water, and floss to dislodge any loose food.
- Apply an ice pack (or a bag of frozen vegetables, frozen gel, etc.) to your face to reduce swelling, but never apply a pain reliever directly on gums near the sore tooth. This can burn the gum tissue.
Chipped or broken tooth
- If bleeding, apply a piece of gauze to the area until the bleeding stops, and apply an ice pack to face to reduce swelling and pain. Save the pieces!
Knocked out adult tooth
- Rinse the tooth, being careful not to remove any tissue fragments, and gently try putting it back into place. Don’t force it.
- If it won’t go back in place, put tooth in a glass of milk, or a cup of water with a bit of salt (the best chance at saving the tooth is if it’s put back in place within an hour).
- If it is only partially dislodged, apply an ice pack, and take some pain reliever if necessary.
Something stuck between your teeth?
- Use floss! Never pick at it with a sharp object because you could cut your gums or scratch your tooth.
A crown fell off
- NEVER use super-glue to re-attach the it!
- If the tooth is sensitive, use an over-the-counter topical anaesthetic.
- If you have an OTC dental cement, coat the interior of the crown, and put it back over the tooth.
A lost filling
- If you have OTC dental cement, apply over the tooth.
- If you don’t have dental cement, use a piece of sugarless gum. Sugared gum will cause discomfort.
Broken braces wire
- Using an eraser, push the wire into a more comfortable position.
- If this doesn’t help, cover the wire with orthodontic wax, or a small cotton ball.
- Never cut the wire, as you could swallow it, or inhale it into your lungs.
