The holiday season should be about sparkling lights, friends, family; gifts beneath the Christmas tree, and delicious food. A nasty toothache, cracked filling or missing crown aren’t the stuff holiday dreams are made of. Unfortunately, dental emergencies happen most often at the most inopportune times. If you find yourself struggling with a tooth-related emergency during the holiday season, here’s what you should do:

Call the Office

If you’re having severe pain or swelling, the best first course of action is to call and speak to someone who can help. Call us at (405) 85 SMILE. Even if it’s a holiday or a weekend, we are monitoring our phones and will get back to you shortly. 

Generally, if you experience a dental emergency, you should:

• Call us for assistance. We will help guide you through the appropriate treatment steps.
• Seek treatment sooner rather than later. It is often a good idea to see a local dentist rather than waiting until you get home.
• Treat your mouth with caution. If you’ve injured your teeth or gums, be gentle with them, clean them, and generally try to maintain a safe, sanitary environment to ward off infection.

Seek Treatment A.S.A.P.

The best way to handle a dental emergency depends obviously on your condition. If you are in severe pain, you should seek help immediately. If a tooth was knocked out, you’d need to pick it up by the enameled portion, put it in a sterile container full of milk, and get to a dentist as soon as possible( ideally within an hour.)  Fractures should also be looked at a.s.a.p., thoroughly cleaned and temporarily treated with a bonding agent to seal the tooth. Similarly, a lost crown can be recemented with dental cement before a more permanent solution can be done.

Home remedies and temporary fixes`

We get it! Sometimes running off to the dentist nearest to you isn’t as easy as it sounds. In some cases, home remedies can hold you over until you can see your dentist. There are effective and ineffective home remedies that can help you cope with the pain. Read more about these pain relief methods here. 

Deal with issues before they become holiday emergencies

Prevention is the best prophylaxis. If you have the suspicion that you may have an infection coming on, a loose filling or a cracked tooth, take care of the problem before the holidays, or before you head out for your winter vacation. It’s always easier to deal with your dentist whom you know and trust than an emergency dentist that you just picked from the phone book.

That said, all of us here at Tecumseh Ridge Dental wish you a wonderful emergency-free, healthy holiday season.