Dental Emergencies

Emergency Dental Care

If you’re experiencing a dental emergency or severe tooth pain, you need to see a dentist immediately. Same-day emergency care will get you out of pain as quickly as possible while also preserving your smile.

As your family’s emergency dentists, our top priority is eliminating the source of your discomfort. The sooner you can get to one of our clinics in Mesa, Surprise, or Tucson, the better. We encourage you to contact us by phone to let us know you’re on the way. Even if you’re not a current patient of our practice or from this area, we will take the time to see you at our office for an appointment.

What to Expect at Our Dental Clinic

All dental emergencies are streamlined into a treatment room as quickly as possible. First, we’ll take steps to alleviate your pain, such as applying a numbing gel or local anesthetic to numb the tooth. From there, we’ll assess physical issues to screen for disease and the severity of the injury. A small X-ray or two may be needed to evaluate the full extent of trauma/infection on that given tooth.

From there, we’ll discuss the next best steps for treating your dental emergency. It may be that a temporary filling, extraction, or medication is required. Or you could potentially benefit from a crown and root canal. Your therapy will be tailored to your immediate needs as well as the long-term health of your smile.

Types of Emergencies We Treat

Although Wellness Dental offers care for nearly all emergency dental scenarios, here are some of the most common issues we see in our office:

Tooth pain can be caused by a variety of different sources. Some are simple and easy to address, while others require immediate dental services. During your emergency dental exam, we’ll visit with you about your symptoms to determine what triggers them, how long they last, and the severity of your pain. A small X-ray may also be recommended.

Dental abscesses can cause excruciating tooth pain or none at all. Symptoms include small fistulas (pimples/blisters) on the gums near the root of the tooth that may come and go. You might even notice a salty or metallic taste in that part of your mouth. Your tooth may also be hypersensitive to warm and hot temperatures, or to biting pressure.

If you suspect that you have an abscess, we will want to take an X-ray of the tooth to see how extensive the damage is, or if another issue is to blame. Depending on the extent of the infection, an antibiotic can help to temporarily alleviate some of the inflammation, but a root canal will be the only way to avoid extracting your tooth.

A chipped tooth is one of the most common dental emergencies we see in children and over the summer months when people are more active. Even without dental pain, a broken tooth can be unbearable. You need fast dental care to attempt to save the tooth, avoid a root canal, and bond the area so that it’s whole again.

It’s best if you can get to our office within the day. Preferably within the first hour or two. Be sure to keep the tooth moist by storing it in a sealed container or zip-top bag, completely lubricated in milk, contact solution, saliva, or saline. Preventing the tooth from drying out is key. Emergency dentistry treatment may include bonding the broken fragment back into place or covering the chipped area with bonding. Larger fractures may need something much bigger, such as a dental crown.

A completely avulsed (knocked-out) tooth requires immediate emergency care. Acting quickly can help you avoid serious pain, infection, or other side effects to your mouth. If you’re able to locate your knocked-out tooth, only handle it by the crown, which is the portion you typically see when you smile. Do not touch the root. If there is visible dirt or debris, hold the tooth under a slow, steady stream of running water to gently rinse away foreign materials.

Next, you have one of two options. You can attempt to insert the whole tooth directly back into the socket. However, do not force it as it may not fit if there is damage to the bone underneath. The other option is to place the tooth into a sealed container, keeping it completely submerged in milk, saline, contact solution, or even water with a pinch of salt added. To preserve your tooth, it’s crucial to contact one of our dental clinics immediately. Best treatment results for knocked-out teeth tend to occur within the first 1-2 hours following the injury. In some cases, the tooth can be splinted back into place. Otherwise, root canals and extractions are the next logical steps.

Older dental restorations can gradually wear out. And if the teeth behind them develop new cavities, it can cause the filling, crown, or bridge to detach from the tooth entirely. Even if the restoration is only partly loose, it’s essential to treat it quickly. Otherwise, the infection underneath can set for several days, weeks, or months, eventually spreading to other teeth in the mouth.

Do not attempt to glue or re-attach your restoration. If it is a crown on a front tooth, you can try to create a temporary seal with a small amount of toothpaste (but only if you’re certain not to swallow your cap.) Call our number immediately to plan to see our dentist at your earliest convenience. For our patients who completely lose a crown or bridge restoration, you may feel free to store it in a zip-top bag and bring it with you to your appointment. In some instances, our dental clinic may be able to reattach it to your tooth. But if the failure is due to oral health concerns, a new one is likely necessary.

A broken or cracked denture can be a dental emergency too. After all, you rely on your dentures to eat and speak throughout the day. Our dental professional will evaluate your prosthesis to determine if can be repaired, even if just temporarily until we replace it with a new one. Do not attempt to repair your full or partial denture on your own, as it could cause additional (and irreversible) damage to your appliance.

If you have visible swelling along your gums or bleeding in that area and need medical advice, our emergency dental services can put your mind at ease. Such a dental issue may be anything from an abscessed tooth to food caught below the gums. But if you’re experiencing severe facial swelling or bleeding that doesn’t stop when pressure is applied, head to your nearest emergency room. In the meantime, mild swelling can be relieved by taking an over-the-counter anti-inflammatory medication such as Motrin or ibuprofen.

How to Relieve Tooth Pain at Home

If you’re waiting to get in for an appointment or your dental issue doesn’t seem too severe, here are some tips to follow:

• Take an over-the-counter anti-inflammatory to relieve pain. Ibuprofen (Motrin) works best, as it reduces swelling, and it’s swelling that’s typically the leading cause of toothaches.
• Alternate moist warm or cool compresses on the side of your face to alleviate inflammation and discomfort.
• Try to avoid eating hot, spicy, or hard-textured foods.
• Clean the area around your tooth well, including flossing between the teeth and just under the gumlines to remove any impacted food.
• Rinse with warm salt water every 30-60 minutes to minimize irritation and swelling.

Affording Emergency Dental Treatment

A toothache may be one of the most painful experiences you’ve ever felt. We’ll work closely with your insurance carrier to help you maximize your coverage options so that you can focus on your oral health instead of trying to figure out how to afford emergency care services.

If you don’t have insurance, affording the treatment you need shouldn’t stand in the way of you and accessible care. Our dentists offer flexible financing options so that you can start treatment right away while making affordable monthly payments toward the cost of your service. Both 0% and low-interest financing are available and you can apply right here in our Arizona clinic.

Financing can also be combined with your existing dental insurance, further minimizing your initial out-of-pocket costs to see an emergency dentist.

In Pain? Call Now

Wellness Dental offers same-day emergency dental care in Surprise, Mesa, and Tucson. If you’re in pain or have a broken tooth, contact our dental team immediately (even if it’s after hours.) Our dental offices are always here to serve you and your family.