Are you experiencing a dental emergency?

We try to accommodate most of the dental emergency on the same or following day!

A toothache that wakes you up in the middle of the night. The sudden accident that knocks out a tooth. The crunchy snack that chips a tooth or breaks a filling. Well, maybe we haven’t all experienced accidentally losing a tooth, but we all know it can happen easily and without warning.

Any of these can mean pain, or difficulty with normal activities like eating, drinking, sleeping, even breathing. But, what else do dental emergencies have in common?

Anxiety, worry, concern. It’s normal. Many people don’t know what to do when a dental emergency happens.

Should you rush to the hospital?

1. Can a lost tooth be saved?
2. Is it okay to take painkillers?
3. Is there anything you can or should do while waiting for treatment?

So many questions – but in an emergency, you should know that the first thing you should do is call an Emergency dentist. If you don’t have one, please call our Surrey/Delta Emergency Dentist at: (604) 597-8808

Here are some tips for common dental emergency:

1. For a knocked-out permanent or adult tooth, keep it moist at all times. If you can, try placing the tooth back in the socket without touching the root. If that’s not possible, place it in between your cheek and gums, in milk, or use a tooth preservation product that has the CDA Seal of Acceptance. Then, get to My Dentist at Boundary Park in Surrey, BC right away.
2. For a cracked tooth, immediately rinse the mouth with warm water to clean the area. Put cold compresses on the face to keep any swelling down.
3. If you bite your tongue or lip, clean the area gently with water and apply a cold compress.
4. For toothaches, rinse the mouth with warm water to clean it out. Gently use dental floss to remove any food caught between the teeth. Do not put aspirin on the aching tooth or gum tissues.
5. For objects stuck in the mouth, try to gently remove with floss but do not try to remove it with sharp or pointed instruments.

When you have a dental emergency, it’s important to visit our Surrey/Delta Dental Office on 120th Street in Surrey or an emergency room as soon as possible.

Here are some simple precautions you can take to avoid accident and injury to the teeth:

1. Wear a mouth guard when participating in sports or recreational activities.
2. Avoid chewing ice, popcorn kernels and hard candy, all of which can crack a tooth.
3. Use scissors, NEVER your teeth, to cut things.

What Is Your Emergency Dentist Looking For During a Dental Exam?

• Damaged, missing or decayed teeth
• Early signs of cavities
• Condition of your gums, such as periodontal pockets, inflammation or other signs of gum disease (which can lead to tooth and bone loss) to see how previous dental work such as root canals, fillings and crowns are holding up
• Early signs of mouth or throat cancer, such as white lesions or blocked salivary glands
• Other suspicious growths or cysts
• Position of your teeth (e.g., spacing, bite)
• Signs that you clench or grind your teeth (a treatable problem that can cause headache or sore jaw and can, if serious, lead to hearing loss and tooth loss)
• Signs of bleeding or inflammation on your tongue and on the roof or floor of your mouth
• The overall health and function of your temporomandibular joint (which joins the jaw to skull), checking for signs of disorders that can cause pain or tenderness
• The general condition of the bones in your face, jaw and around your mouth
• The dental exam can catch problems early—before you see or feel them—when they are much easier and less expensive to treat.

Your Surrey emergency dentist may explain what’s happening during the exam and give you a summary of the findings. If not, be sure to ask. As patient, you are a full partner in your oral health care.

At My Dentist at Boundary Park, our Surrey Emergency Dentist reserve time in their daily schedules for emergency patients. Contact our Surrey Dental Office at (604) 597-8808 and provide as much detail as possible about your dental emergency.