Are you having a severe toothache?

Is the pain getting out of control?

Tried all the home remedies but it is not getting better?

The last resort is to visit an emergency dentist.

Be it a broken tooth or swollen gums, dental emergencies can happen anytime.

In this pandemic situation, reaching to a relevant doctor seems difficult.

In this article, I will tell you what is a dental emergency, types of dental emergencies, and eight tips to find an emergency dentist in London.

So, let’s find out.

What is a Dental Emergency?

A dental emergency is a condition that is causing pain in tooth or gums, giving a tightening sensation, or you have a loss of function altogether. Such conditions if are left untreated, can worsen quickly.

Types of Dental Emergencies

There are many different types of emergency dental conditions i.e.

• Toothaches – mostly related to changes in the pulp of the tooth. If left untreated it can form an apical abscess. The abscess can cause swellings and raised temperatures. Other causes of toothaches can be dentinal sensitivity which can arise from chipped/lost dental fillings, abrasion, and gum recession.
• Dental Prosthetic Emergencies – Prosthetic emergencies can be lost or broken fillings, cracked natural tooth, loose or de-bonded crowns, broken crowns, and broken dentures. Some of these emergencies can show no sign of pain or bleeding. If left untreated then it may cause oral ulcers and pain can travel through the mouth and lead to headaches even.
• Dental trauma – Dental trauma can be caused by trips, falls, sports injuries, and assault. The injuries can be small cracks on the surface of the tooth, small enamel chips, fracture of the tooth and root, and root fracture. Such dental trauma needs immediate care and treatment.
• Injuries involving the whole body of the tooth – These injuries need to be treated immediately as time is of the essence. A concussion of the tooth, loosening or complete knock out of the tooth, extrusion of the tooth, intrusive or lateral luxation are some of the intense dental injuries.
• Swellings and swollen face – It is mostly caused because the previous injury or dental issue was left untreated and that led to the formation of a localized abscess.
• Wisdom teeth and pericoronitis – Wisdom tooth can cause pain as well as swelling. In some cases you need to have a small incision to help wisdom teeth come out easily.
• Bleeding or pain after an extraction – A little pain or bleeding after extraction of a tooth is common but if you experience continuous bleeding then it is better to see the dentist.

What doesn’t count as a dental emergency?

Some dental problems cannot be considered as dental emergency. It is advised to treat such problems using self-help until you can get an appointment with your usual dentist:

• No severe pain or bleeding
• Losing a veneer
• A gum abscess or gum boil:  these are not so harmful or painful and get healed on their own within a couple of days
• Breaking your braces: It can be considered as a dental emergency if your mouth gets damaged because of broken brace. Else broken braces can usually be repaired temporarily or left off until you can make an appointment with your usual dentist.

8 Tips to Find an Emergency Dentist

1. In case you have a dental emergency during normal working hours then just book an emergency appointment with a local dentist as soon as possible.
2. If you have a dental emergency at night or on days when the dental office stays closed, you need to find an out-of-hours dentist to facilitate immediate treatment.
3. Contact your regular dentist and ask for help. You can ask for immediate treatment that can be done on your own. Or if they can treat you at someplace.
4. In London, you can contact the NHS Direct Helpline (0845 4647). You will get the details of London based emergency dentists who are located near to you. It is a 24 hours helpline. They will advise you on what to do until you reach an emergency dentist. You will also be assessed on the phone by a triage professional, and you may be offered an emergency slot at a clinic
5. You can search the local phone directory to find other private dental practices in the locality.
6. You can also search online by using Google search. You can write in the search ‘Emergency Dentist London’ or search by specific area.
7. You can take an appointment from Emergency Dentist London by calling on 0208 245 7575. It is a private practice that provides 24 hours dentist service. They accept patients locally as well as nationally from any part of London, Essex or Hertfordshire. They provide following services:

• Immediate assessment
• Diagnose your emergency dental issue
• An in-depth discussion with you about treatment options and all costs applicable to your choice of treatment
• Can take dental x-rays
• Provides prescriptions and medications to help with your problem
• Dental extractions
• Pulp extirpations and root canal treatment
• Minor oral surgery
• Dental fillings for broken teeth or any traumatic injuries

8. You can look for emergency dentist open now at 24 Hour Emergency Dentist Clinic London. From root canals to broken teeth, emergency dentist clinic can help you in such dental emergencies. The website can also be useful for you in terms of different blogs it shares on different dental issues and how you can self-treat them if it is not something serious.

One thing you should always keep in mind that private dental practices and such emergency dental situations are costly than the regular dental checkups. So, if you have any such dental emergency in London, then you can follow the above mentioned tips and find an emergency dentist.