Dental emergencies aren’t always painful, bloody, or unsightly. Here’s what you need to know about dental emergencies, and when immediate attention is necessary to save a tooth.
Somewhere in the neighborhood of five million teeth get knocked out every year. Causes can range from car accidents to falling off a bike to playing sports. Kids and adults are at almost equal risk of having a tooth knocked out
At the dental practice of Dr. Padmaja Yalamanchili in Fairfax, Virginia, emergency dentistry services include dealing with a knocked out tooth. Here’s what you should do to keep a knocked-out tooth viable until you can get to our office.
The first thing to remember when it comes to dealing with a broken or knocked out tooth is recovery. Find the broken piece of tooth or the knocked out tooth and preserve it while getting to our office as soon as possible. It’s quite likely that Dr. Yalamanchili can fix your broken tooth by bonding it back together, or even replace a knocked out tooth and get it to stay in place in your jaw.
You have approximately one hour of viability if the tooth is handled properly. When you find the knocked out tooth, keep from touching the root. Instead, handle it carefully by the chewing surface that is normally exposed to the air.
Rinse the tooth quickly using milk if available or water if necessary (bottled water is better than tap water). Then tuck the tooth back into the socket. Apply steady pressure for at least five minutes, making sure the tooth is properly aligned with the other teeth. Maintain light pressure while you travel to our office.
If the tooth won’t stay in place, pack the socket with gauze. Tuck the tooth between the inside of your cheek and your gum, where it will stay wet with saliva. When absolutely necessary (for example, if the tooth belongs to a small child and there are concerns about choking), you can put the tooth in a little cup of milk.
Visiting our office for emergency dentistry treatment by Dr. Yalamanchili as soon as possible after your accident will give her the best chance of being able to reimplant your tooth and restore your smile. You might have to have the tooth attached to other teeth for a few weeks, and you may need a root canal in the future.
If your tooth doesn’t make it, you have options. Dr. Yalamanchili can create a restoration like a bridge or recommend a dental implant to restore beauty and functionality to your smile.
If you need emergency dental care, call Dr. Yalamanchili at our office at 703-213-5313 or book your appointment online today.
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