dental care blog
Find great information, insights, tips and helpful information on how to keep your teeth healthy
When it comes to visits to dentists, then most people are acquainted with typical twice a year dental check-up procedure. You schedule an appointment to visit your local dentist and they clean your teeth and tell you how well you have been doing as far as your dental health. Undoubtedly, these routine visits are beneficial, but there are times when you can't wait for any appointment and you need to see the dentist immediately.
Such situations that call for immediate dental help are termed as dental emergencies. Say, you are cooking Sunday dinner, or lying in bed at night and you start to experience a serious toothache, you wouldn't be able to wait even for a day to get help. You would need expert dental services right away. Other conditions that can be counted as emergency dental conditions include knocked out teeth or cracked teeth. By waiting too long you won't only have to deal with severe pain for long, but you could also put yourself at risk of causing an even more serious dental condition. Thus, getting the aid of an emergency dentist would be the best deal. Thankfully, today lots of dentists provide emergency dental services; this means they are available to help 24 hours, everyday, even Sundays. So, if you are in severe pain or you or someone you know has knocked out his teeth and bleeding, then you can visit the emergency dentist right away. By visiting dentist right away you can't only immediate pain relief but in case of knocked out or broken teeth you also increase the chances of successful restoration. These dentists could also assist you when you get something lodged in your gums or teeth. Many people have experienced the annoyance and aggravation of having objects like popcorn stuck in their gums or teeth. Conditions like this not only cause discomfort but are also very painful. During these times, it is best to visit a dentist instead of trying to help yourself. By doing it yourself you could end up causing even more harm. Another case of emergency could be when you bite down hard on your tongue or lip, especially if blood is drawn. Whenever there is an open wound, whether it is in your leg, arm or tongue, there are chances for infection. In order to prevent serious infection or worse, you would need to consult an emergency dentist. Visit Edmonton Emergency Dental Clinic whenever there is any dental emergency. Imagine you are walking down the street and you find yourself falling flat down on your face. You crack a tooth. What should you do? A cracked or chipped tooth can happen anywhere, anytime. Don't be surprised if you are eating through dinner and suddenly you hear a crack inside your mouth only to find a piece of your tooth.
A cracked or chipped tooth can happen to anyone at the most unexpected moments. Here's what you can do if ever you land up in such a situation. Save the Chipped Tooth Don't swallow the chipped tooth. Using your tongue, carefully find the chipped piece and bring it out. You need to save it. If it is big enough, your dentist can put your tooth back together. Put the chipped tooth piece back in a plastic bag. Ensure you wrap it around with some wet gauze so the piece is always moistened. Prevent Infections Until you visit the dentist, you must do all in your power to prevent an infection because that area is susceptible to bacteria. Throughout the day, wash your mouth with warm salt water and keep the area clean. You may want to avoid eating on the injured side. Use Tooth Wax Tooth or paraffin wax is perfect for a scenario where you chipped your tooth. Cover that area with the wax. It will help prevent food particles from collecting over there. What should you eat? When you have a chipped tooth, avoid eating tough food which you have to chew. It could further damage your tooth. Consider having soup or something soft like noodles. Reduce the pain If the tooth chip is causing you pain, here are a few ways to reduce it. - Use ice to numb the area. Wrap ice or a frozen pea packet in a paper towel and press it against the side the tooth that got chipped. - When you are brushing your teeth, brush the affected area lightly so as not to cause any inflammation or damage to the chipped tooth or exposed gums. - If you are experiencing considerable pain from the chipped tooth, have a painkiller. Get to the Dentist ASAP Try to visit your dentist as soon as possible. The quicker you visit him/her after the incident, the better chance of your chipped tooth getting fixed. A cracked or chipped tooth can be a new experience, but it is not one that should be taken lightly. There is no need to panic, your tooth hasn't shattered or fallen out. Just keep these steps in mind if you ever have to go through one. Brushing your teeth in the morning and evening is probably the most reinforced dental habit. However, many parents ignore flossing as a way to take care of teeth. In fact, there are a large number of people who consider brushing their teeth frequently in the day as a replacement to flossing. This is not true.
Flossing is quite different from brushing your teeth. What a flossing session does is reach into those hard to get places, those corners and crevices of your teeth and remove any food particles that have gotten stuck there. It essentially helps prevent gum diseases and tooth loss. Can you imagine food rotting in your teeth which causes a gum infection? And all of this happened because your tooth brush wasn't able to clean the tight corners of your teeth. Flossing is better than using a tooth pick too. A tooth pick tries to use brute force to push out the food particle and you will land up damaging your teeth and gum. Run your tongue through your teeth and you will realize that there are many gaps in-between which a brush won't be able to clean. This is why flossing is important. It gets to places that your brush can't, further enhancing the hygiene of your teeth. Here are some quick tips to getting your flossing right. - Pick a Floss Don't just pick up a string of thread and start flossing your teeth. Ask your dentist which floss would be best for you. - It's a Sawing Motion Don't jerk the floss up and down, instead move it in a sawing motion of back and forth. This way the floss enters the crevice gently. - Pull it Side Ways Once the floss is in the crevice, pull it sideways so that you scrape off any particles that have gotten stuck to the teeth - Get the Back Teeth Too The back teeth are the hardest to get to, but most of the food gets stuck in there since your grinders do most of the chewing. - Do it Gently Do not grind the floss into your teeth or gum. Flossing is a gentle process, so don't hurry it otherwise you will risk damaging your gums. - Do it at least once a week if you have a busy schedule Flossing is a chore. There are so many crevices in your mouth and it takes longer than brushing your teeth. While it is highly recommended that you do it everyday, a lot of us just can't find the time to do so. In such a case, try to do it at least once a week. Sundays are best since you will actually have a holiday and can spend ten minutes cleaning your teeth in the morning or before going to bed. The best thing you can do is make flossing a habit. Let it be part of your oral hygiene and you will take care of your teeth even better. In fact, don't be surprised if those random toothaches stop. Teeth contain one of the most sensitive nerve endings in the human body. This is why a toothache is equal to a brutal torture or worse. It is terrible to get inflicted by a toothache and you probably want to rush to the dentist. However, you may be in a situation where you can't, for example, it's late in the evening and the dentist's office is closed or you are busy with your job.
Well, you don't have to sit down and bear the pain. You do have options to do something about the toothache. A toothache usually occurs because the central portion of the tooth, called the pulp, gets inflamed. It can happen because of a cavity, a blow to the tooth or even an infection developing in your gums. Here are your options when you get afflicted with a toothache. Visit the Dentist Your first order of business the next day is to visit the dentist. Even if you managed to get rid of the pain, get a checkup. A toothache is basically a message that is sent to your brain that something is wrong. The longer you wait to visit the dentist, the more damage you are risking. Clean your Teeth Give your teeth a thorough cleaning. - Brush your teeth, but avoid injuring the afflicted tooth. - Floss it to make sure there aren't any food particles stuck between your teeth - Rinse it with warm water mixed with salt. A tooth ache can be caused by a mild infection and warm salted water works well against it. Cloves Cloves are a favored natural home remedy. If you don't have cloves, you can head to the pharmacy and get access to clove oil. However, be sure to follow the instruction of the clove oil and completely avoid applying it on your gum. Instead, put it on the tooth that is aching. If some oil does slip up onto your gum, be ready for a burning sensation. Apply Ice Either get an ice bag, frozen meat or a frozen pea packet and press the packet on the cheek that is hurting. Wrap the ice pack in a thin cloth or paper towel before you press it against your skin. This will lower the temperature of the whole area and help numb the nerves. Do not apply ice directly to your tooth, it will only make the ache worse. This is because toothaches are very sensitive to hot and cold temperature. Numbing Gel You can get a numbing gel from the pharmacy and apply it on the tooth. This will temporarily numb it and help control the pain. Apply Hydrogen Peroxide Hydrogen Peroxide is a disinfectant. Dip a Q-tip into the hydrogen peroxide and use it to clean the afflicted area. Wash your mouth after the process. Take a Painkilller If none of these methods don't work, then should you resort to a painkiller. Aspirin can provide quick relief to minor tooth aches. Visit the Dentist Your first order of business the next day is to visit the dentist. Even if you managed to get rid of the pain, get a checkup. A toothache is basically a message that is sent to your brain that something is wrong. The longer you wait to visit the dentist, the more damage you are risking. So take care of your teeth and don't panic when you get a toothache, you don't have to lose the tooth! |
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Dr. Alexander Yeh and Dr. Iyad Al-Qishawi are registered general dentists. They graduated in the same class at the University of Manitoba’s Faculty of Dentistry. Archives
July 2016
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Edmonton Emergency Dental Services:Pain and infection relief
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Contact Us:Phone: 587 410 5766 Address: 4526 Calgary Trail NW #110 Southbound NW, Edmonton, AB T6H 4A6 |
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