Terri Ramsey Beavers Chipping or breaking a tooth is no joke. It can seriously hurt, and teeth can be damaged in a number of ways depending on the type of injury and the condition of your teeth, to begin with. And if you don’t have one to visit, this professional Dentist in Turlock comes highly recommended. In the meantime, you should do what you can to manage any pain you’re in and take care of the inside of your mouth to avoid any further injuries.
What to Do After Breaking a Tooth
If you chip or break a tooth, dentists say that the first thing you need to do is rinse your mouth out with warm water right away to clean it. Apply pressure to stop any bleeding, and if your face is starting to swell up, a cold compress will help. If your tooth is seriously broken and you can find the piece of the broken tooth, don’t throw it away – wrap it in some wet gauze and take it with you to the dentist.
What If You Lose a Tooth?
If the tooth has completely popped out of your mouth, hold it gently by the crown with a gauze pad and try to place it back into the socket, if you can. If it looks dirty, rinse it with water but don’t scrub it or use any other cleaning solutions. Try to keep it as it is. If you can’t get it back into the socket, place it in a glass of water or saline solution. In this situation, it’s best to get to the dentist as quickly as you can – ideally within thirty minutes. An emergency dentist will usually be able to prioritise you. If you don’t have a dentist, you can sign up for dental services in Richmond, New South Wales here.
Pain Relief for a Chipped Tooth
Breaking or chipping a tooth can be seriously painful. To manage it, flush your mouth with warm water to keep it clean, and apply a cold compress every few minutes to the outside of your face, which will help to reduce any swelling. You might find it helpful to take over the counter pain relief, but make sure that you don’t take any more than the recommended dosage. Adding clove oil to your cold compress might help; it contains eugenol – a natural numbing agent.
Protecting Your Mouth
If you’ve only chipped a small piece of your tooth, you can stick some dental wax over the edge until you see a dentist to prevent any sharp edges from damaging your mouth or tongue. But don’t do this if you have a large chip or there’s a section of tooth missing, as you could end up damaging it more.
You’ll more than likely need to be seen by a dentist for anything except the smallest of chips or cracks because it can be difficult for an untrained person to tell just how deep the damage might have run.
Your dentist can assess the situation and let you know whether you’re going to need dental treatment or not, so it’s always worth the visit even if the damage isn’t much.