Preventing dental emergencies in children
I saw on article on Facebook about a little girl in the UK who had to have 16 teeth pulled. It seemed like it was a kind of emergency situation. Is there a way to prevent this kind of thing from happnening, or was it a fluke situation? Gillian A. – Baltimore, MD Gillian, This […]
Is this a dental emergency?
My tooth has been hurting on and off for a while. Is this something I need to see a dentist about? It always goes away. Dennie R. – New Mexico Dennie, This isn’t a dental emergency right now, but it can become one quickly. It’s possible that the nerve of your tooth is dying. You may […]
Can’t afford a dentist and now I have an emergency
I haven’t been able to afford a dentist in a while. Now I’ve got a loose tooth. I don’t recall getting hit, but it worries me that this tooth might fall out. What do I do? Drew O. – Cleveland Drew, I’m sorry for the situation you’re in. I have a strong suspicion that your […]
Store bought fillings
About a year ago I saw some store bought fillings at the pharmacy. I filed it away for future reference. Last night, one of my fillings fell out. I’m trying to leave town to pick up my son from college and don’t have time for a dental appointment. Can I just use the stuff from […]
Dentist doesn’t care about my broken crown
I had a temporary crown break. My dentist said it would be several days before he could see me and that this wasn’t considered an emergency. I called another dentist explaining the situation. He fit me in right away and said it most definitely is an emergency. How can there be such a difference in […]
Should I have brought my son in?
Yesterday my son got kicked in the mouth at school. It knocked out one of his teeth. The school didn’t tell me about it until later, which really angered me. I would have wanted to come up and check on him. By the time I found out about it, he was fine, so I decided […]
Can I put off a root canal?
If I am not in pain, can I put off a root canal. If so, how long? Deidre I. – Louisiana Deidre, If your infection isn’t active, then you can put it off indefinitely. However, if there is pain, even a little bit, that means you have an active infection. Sometimes the pain stops and […]
Am I too old to have my wisdom teeth removed?
I have a wisdom tooth that is really bothering me, but I am 33 years old and am a little concerned that I might be too old to have it removed. Is there much risk of complication at my age? Also, should I just have all of them removed or just wait until they bother […]
Can’t drink hot chocolate-my tooth hurts
We’ve finally gotten to the cold weather and my tooth hurts like crazy. I can’t even drink my coveted hot chocolate. Is there anything I can do to get rid of this pain? Sara G. – Utah Sara, When your tooth is sensitive to heat, it means the pulp inside your tooth is so inflamed […]
Emergency Preparation: A knocked out tooth
I’ve been making out a list of emergency prepardness sheets for a workshop I’ve been invited to speak. I thought it would be useful to list one of my sheets. Dealing With A Knocked Out Tooth 1. Get to the dentist as quickly as possible. It is ideal to get there within the first 30 […]