What qualifies as a dental emergency?
A dental emergency is if you have swelling in the jaw, severe pain, broken tooth, or a tooth that came out of the socket playing sports or falling down.
What should I do if I lose a tooth?
If you lose a tooth, you should keep it clean. Don't scrub it. You should put it in milk or keep it in your saliva. See a dentist as soon as you can. The best thing to do is see a dentist within 30 minutes.
Can I treat a broken tooth in one visit?
We can certainly treat a broken tooth in one visit. What we do is we just take the tooth out. I try to place the implant and the bone graft at the same time. It's been shown that it's best for the patient in the long term. So when the patient comes in, I design the implant that I want, the length and the width like so. And once the design is done, then we go ahead, take the tooth out, and place the implant. So here it is, we place the implant, and we put bone graft around it. I did a little sinus lift to place a good long implant in there. And then this is just a temporary tooth to maintain the bulk of the tissue and gums. So this will heal in about five to six months.
How do you handle dental emergencies after hours?
If you have a dental emergency after hours, you can always call us, leave a message, or text us. But if this is a true dental emergency where you have swelling or fever, please go to a hospital emergency room as this can be really serious. But the best thing to do is obviously to prevent this situation from happening. So see your dentist frequently.
What do I do to manage severe tooth pain at home until my appointment?
If you have severe pain at home, I suggest you don't place any topical stuff which are over-the-counter. Don't put any topical stuff on the tooth or the gums. It may burn your gums and actually make things worse. I would take just over-the-counter medications like Tylenol, Aleve, Naproxen. And if it's severe pain, my suggestion is go to the emergency room.
What is considered a dental emergency?
A dental emergency is considered when the patient is in severe pain from a tooth having a cavity, infection, or a fracture. You need to see an emergency dentist when the tooth is so painful that you cannot wait for your regular dental visit. You don't have to go to the emergency room unless it's after hours and there is no emergency dentist available. If you have an infection or swelling in the jaw, you would probably need to go to the emergency room immediately.
What are different types of dental emergencies?
Different types of emergencies in dentistry include wisdom tooth pain, infection from a wisdom tooth, inability to open the mouth, open locked jaw, or closed locked jaw where you can't open or close your jaw, severe pain from a tooth needing a root canal, or a broken tooth. You would need an emergency dental extraction when the gums around the tooth are so severely infected. We call this pericoronitis. This usually happens around wisdom teeth or when the tooth is broken and has caused infection or severe pain.
Why might I need an emergency root canal?
You may need an emergency root canal when the tooth is broken or the cavity that has been there has reached the nerve in the tooth and is causing infection or severe pain.
Do you offer same-day care?
At Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery of New York, we do offer same-day care. Typically, we see patients that are in severe pain, and we remove the teeth and alleviate the pain for them.
Can I schedule a late hour appointment?
You can schedule a late hour appointment by calling our office. Typically, we like to see patients during office hours, but if it's an emergency and you're in need of an oral surgeon, we can definitely accommodate you.
Can I be seen on the weekends?
You can be seen on the weekends only by appointment.