If your teeth hurt, you are probably debating if you should call the dentist or not. Today, our Comox dentists explain the signs that indicate your tooth pain may be a dental emergency.
Why Your Teeth Hurt
A toothache can cause throbbing pain in your mouth and could be fairly severe. We probably don't have to tell you to call your dentist as quickly as possible if you are experiencing this emergency.
There are several different signs that indicate you should see a dentist right away, in addition to pain around the tooth. These include:
- Bleeding in your mouth
- Foul taste in your mouth or bad breath
- Facial swelling
- Swelling around the tooth
- Fever
Different factors that may be causing your tooth to feel painful include:
- Tooth decay
- Infected nerve
- Teeth grinding
- Trauma to the tooth or surrounding tissue
- Damaged dental work
- Abscessed tooth
- Infections in the mouth
What You Can Do
If you are experiencing tooth pain, the first thing to do is to quell any bleeding using gauze. If the tooth (or a piece of a tooth) has been lost, try to locate it. Once found, dust off any debris (do not rinse with water).
If you are able, carefully put your tooth back into its socket, and gently bite down. If you can't get your tooth back into the socket, pour some milk into a container with a lid and put your tooth inside. This might help protect your tooth and increase the chances of your dentist being able to replace it.
If you are experiencing swelling or pain, try taking over-the-counter painkillers (while carefully following the instructions on the bottle for the recommended dose) and applying an icepack to the area.
You should then make an appointment with your dentist so the issue can be diagnosed and treated. Note that most dental pain will not stop on its own, and attempting to diagnose or treat the issue yourself could lead to serious issues long-term.
Depending on what the source of your tooth pain is our dentists at Comox Valley Dental Centre in Comox might either tell you to come into the office immediately for treatment or schedule an appointment to see you as early as possible.
If you Bookmark our website or type “dentist near me” into your go-to search engine we will probably pop up.
If you have experienced trauma to the tooth that has caused a fracture or breakage, or if you are in severe pain that you are unable to manage yourself, call our office as soon as you are comfortable and safe. We will make room for you in our schedule as soon as possible for emergency dental treatment.
If your case is less severe, here are some other things you can do to manage your discomfort until your appointment time:
- Keep your teeth clean
- Record your pain
- Rinse your mouth using saltwater
- If the tooth is broken, apply a piece of gauze over the jagged edge of the tooth