Is there anything more unnerving than a dental emergency? After all, they typically involve pain, and can also involve damage to the teeth or soft tissue of the mouth. They can cause pain and bleeding and lead easily to panic. This is why A Healthy Smile Dentistry in Florham Park, NJ offers all of our patients the following tips to use during any sort of dental emergency.
Prevention
As your dentist in Florham Park, the one thing we always say about emergency dental care is that it is best treated by practicing dental emergency prevention. What do we mean? It is easily done if you:
- Do not use your teeth as tools for opening anything, tearing things, or other such purposes
- Wear protective guards when playing contact sports or doing activities where dental injuries are possible (skateboarding, skating, etc.)
- Avoid behaviors such as chewing nails, ice, hard candies or very sticky foods that might cause damage
- Always keep the contact information for your emergency dentist available (such as entering it into your phone’s contacts)
What to Do In a Dental Emergency
Naturally, it is not always possible to avoid a dental emergency and they are usually limited to two formats – soft tissue or tooth injuries. Sometimes it is both. When it is a tooth injury, you need to remain calm. If a tooth breaks or falls out, try to locate the piece or tooth and after gently rinsing in warm water, place it in a glass of milk and get to the office. Sometimes it is possible to insert or mend the tooth, but especially if it is kept in milk.
If it is a soft tissue injury, you may need medical treatment – especially if it is your tongue or the damage is extensive. Try to slow bleeding with a salt rinse and the use of gauze at the point of injury. If it is only a mild injury, call the office. However, if it is extensive, don’t delay and go right to the emergency room.
Contact Our Dentist if You Are Experiencing a Dental Emergency
Do you have a dental emergency? Get in touch with us by calling our Florham Park, NJ office at 973-377-2222. You can also use our online contact form and one of our staff will get back to you promptly.