Dental emergencies can come unexpectedly and cause a lot of trouble. Acting swiftly in such situations and getting the necessary treatment would mean the difference between losing and saving a tooth. Here are some of the most common dental emergencies and the best way to handle them.
Broken Teeth
The teeth may suffer chipping, cracks, or fractures when you take a hard blow to the mouth or bite anything too hard. Such a wound can be extremely painful and possibly lead to bleeding as well.
As soon as the incident occurs, make sure you rinse your mouth with clean water to remove the broken pieces of tooth and blood. Avoid touching the injured tooth as the microbes in your hand might infect it. Further, you may control the bleeding using a clean piece of gauze. You should also place a cold pack on the cheek to reduce swelling. More importantly, rush to our dental practice in Houston, TX at the earliest so that we can assess the situation as required. We will treat it using medication and dental restorations.
Avulsed Teeth
A tooth that has been knocked out from the mouth completely is called an avulsed tooth. It could result from a high impact force sustained by the mouth caused by an automobile accident, a sports-related injury, a bad fall, or other similar accident. It would lead to severe pain and bleeding as the nerves and blood vessels near the tooth would be disturbed.
Rinse the mouth with water and place a piece of gauze near the wound. Pick up the avulsed tooth, holding only the tooth crown and avoiding the root, as the microbes in your fingers could infect the live tissues on its surface. Then place the tooth in a glass of milk or between your cheek and gums to keep the tissues alive by the time you reach our clinic. If you visit us within an hour of the incident, we may be able to place the tooth back in its socket and allow it to reattach to the surrounding tissues.
Injured Soft Tissues
Bruises or cuts on the soft tissues of the mouth could cause severe bleeding. If left untreated, the microbes in the mouth would enter the wound and infect the tissues underneath. Hence, it is best to get it treated at the earliest to prevent complications. If the wound is deep, we may have to use sutures to treat it along with medication.
We invite you to schedule a consultation with our dentist, Dr. Zarghouni, to get all your oral concerns addressed at the earliest. Please call us at (281) 880-6666 or reach out through online consultation and we’ll be happy to help.