Best Emergency Dentist in Saint Leonard, MD

Dental emergencies can be stressful if you don’t know how to properly react to them. It is first important to understand what a dental emergency is and how it should be treated.

Whether or not you think your symptoms are consistent with a dental emergency, you should always contact a dentist for advice, so that you can get back to feeling better as soon as possible.

If you’re looking for emergency dental care, then you’re probably wondering where you can find the best emergency dentist in Saint Leonard, MD.

Does A Toothache Count As A Dental Emergency?

Toothaches are not usually associated with emergencies, but depending on the cause of the toothache, they can be quite serious.

Some causes for toothaches include:

• Cavity; Serious cavities eat away at the hard, protective layers of enamel and dentin surrounding your teeth. When they’re deep enough and go untreated, they can cause pain when you eat and chew, particularly when you eat very sweet foods.
• Infected/rotting tooth; An untreated cavity will also result in an infection of your tooth. As the nerves inside your tooth die, this will cause you serious pain and discomfort, which is usually accompanied by tooth sensitivity and swelling of the gums near the infected area. It can cause irreversible damage to your tooth, so it’s best to treat these kinds of situations promptly.
• Oral trauma; If you experience a hard hit in a contact sport, a slip and fall, or any other trauma that results in a dental injury, the pain in your jaw and gums may feel similar to a toothache. It’s also possible that one or more of your teeth have been cracked or broken.
• Teeth grinding (bruxism); In some cases, serious and prolonged tooth grinding can put stress on the ligaments and roots of your teeth, which may cause them to ache. If you think you grind your teeth, you should see a dentist right away to prevent further pain and damage to your teeth.

Depending on the cause of your toothache, you may need treatment with a root canal, filling, or even a night guard to prevent teeth grinding.

If you have a toothache that lasts more than 1-2 days and is causing you a lot of pain or discomfort, you’re having a dental emergency. This usually indicates an advanced cavity or an infected tooth.

How Do I Schedule An Emergency Appointment?

Once you have determined that you need an emergency appointment you should contact a dentist as soon as possible. This appointment may not be with your usual dentist and you do not have to go to a practice where you are registered as a regular patient.

When you call the dental practice, you should explain the problem in detail and say that you would like an emergency appointment. Many practices will keep appointments available for patients seeking emergency help and staff at the clinic will be able to offer the next available emergency appointment.

What To Expect From An Emergency Appointment

When you arrive, your dentist will locate and treat the cause of the problem. If you are in severe pain your dentist should be able to diagnose the root cause issue and offer pain relief. In some instances, it may be necessary to remove a tooth causing pain but your dentist will explain this before it happens. In the end, the most important thing is your oral health so be sure to act as efficiently as possible!

If you think you need an emergency appointment, contact Dr. Luke’s office at (301) 880-4439 to schedule an appointment and see what the capable team can do for your dental hygiene as soon as possible!