Dental pain comes in all sorts of shapes and sizes. It could be short, sharp, and pointed or a dull, throbbing, radiant ache.
Perhaps the actual pain level is higher for that short burst of pain, but the ache in your lower jaw around your tooth lasts much longer which makes it so much worse. The dental professionals at Kherani Dental at Aspen don’t want you to have any kind of dental pain, but it’s important to know if your pain is emergent so that effective treatment can begin quickly
Notice What Triggers It
Do your teeth zing when exposed to heat, cold, or sweet? That sensitivity needs to be addressed, and could possibly be a cavity; but it is not necessarily an emergency. Are our teeth sore when eating something tough or chewy? That’s possibly a gum problem, but not an emergency.
Did part of your tooth break off? Are you in too much pain or embarrassment to go to work? If so, it requires immediate attention to make sure nothing gets worse; you want to address the safety of the rest of your teeth and soft tissues as soon as possible.
Underlying Conditions
Sometimes, pain is the last part of a dental puzzle, but if you are aware of your teeth and gums, you can stop a problem before it gets too big. This is true of those tiny cavities that start showing sensitivity to hot and cold.
But if your breath has a putrid odor that will not go away, and you have a giant lump in your gum, that’s an emergency, even without a toothache. The abscess in your gum indicates infection surrounding the root of a tooth. The consequences of not taking care of an abscess immediately include sepsis and spread of infection deeper into the face, among others.
Knocked Out, Fallen Out, and Bleeding
If you or your child has a knocked out (avulsed) tooth, or is bleeding from the mouth, you need to get to our office ASAP. Avulsion can be reversed if treated quickly. Place the tooth in the pocket of your cheek or under your tongue, being so careful not to swallow it. For a child, use a small cup of milk or their saliva to save the tooth during transport. If you have a crown fall off, or a filling fall out, you need to make an appointment for the next day or two, but unless it is causing extreme pain, or the actual tooth has broken more, the situation is not an dire emergency. Gently clean the crown and apply a small amount of dental cement to it and place it back over the tooth and swab open cavities with clove oil until your appointment.
Nobody should live with dental pain as a constant part of their life. No matter what the cause of your dental pain, Dr. Kherani wants to help correct the problem so you feel like smiling again. Contact the Calgary office of Kherani Dental at Aspen to schedule your appointment and start down the road to excellent, pain free dental health!
