3 Ways to Treat a Toothache if there is Instant Dental Care: From a seed lodged in a molar to a major illness that requires surgery, there are many causes of dental discomfort. Make an appointment with your dentist to have it examined if you are having tooth pain.
Emergency Dental Care
A toothache should always be examined by a dentist as soon as feasible, according to Dr. Coronado. Call your dentist’s office to check if an answering service can direct you to an emergency dentist if the pain happens on the weekend, on a holiday, or in the tiny hours. If an infection is suspected, a dentist from the practice might answer the phone and be able to write you an antibiotic prescription. To treat the underlying problem, you should schedule a follow-up in-person consultation as soon as you can, even if that relieves the discomfort.
Another choice is to search online for a nearby emergency dental facility. Consider going to the emergency hospital for pain relief if there isn’t a clinic nearby, your dentist doesn’t accept emergency calls, and the pain is unbearable, advises Coronado. But be aware that you will still require a follow-up visit so a dentist can assess and handle the dental issue.
Home Care While You Wait for Your Appointment
There are a few things you can do at home to ease the pain if your dentist appointment is in a few hours or a day and you’re in pain.
One reason is that cold meals or beverages might aggravate pain from a cavity, a damaged tooth, or an exposed nerve. In order to prevent the pain from getting worse, try to avoid chewing on the tooth that hurts.
While painkillers can be helpful, you should only use them temporarily. In addition to delaying your trip to the dentist to identify and treat the pain’s underlying source, popping them for days may make the discomfort feel better. When taken for a long time, painkillers can potentially have unfavorable side effects.
3 Ways To Treat A Toothache If There Is Instant Dental Care
1. Saltwater Rinse
According to Howard Pollick, MPH, bachelor of dental surgery, a professor of preventive and restorative dentistry at the University of California in San Francisco, using a saltwater solution can help you gently rinse away food particles that are stuck between your teeth and may be the source of the pain.
Warm water with 12 teaspoons salt added should be swished in the mouth for 30 seconds before being spat out. This can be done two or three times daily and will also help ease gum inflammation and canker sore pain.
2. Cold Compress
A cold compress might assist the blood vessels close to the injury to constrict, which can lessen discomfort if you’ve been hurt, perhaps from a fall that involved a blow to the mouth. Apply ice or a cold pack to the affected area for 15 to 20 minutes at a time, wrapped in a towel. Apply the process again over several hours.
3. Tea Bags to Stop Bleeding
Black tea bags contain tannins, which may help stop mouth bleeding and maybe lessen edema. This might lessen pain both before and after an extraction or dental operation that you have scheduled.
According to Dr. Pollick, applying gentle pressure for 5 to 15 minutes on a moistened tea bag will help minimize swelling and promote blood coagulation if a tooth extraction results in some minor ongoing bleeding.
However, Pollick advises calling the dentist for advice if, after attempting this a few times, you notice the bleeding is getting worse.
Don’t Stop With Home Care
A tooth doesn’t just hurt for no reason, according to Linda Rasubala, DDS, PhD, an associate professor of clinical dentistry at the University of Rochester Medical Center in New York.
She suggests visiting a dentist even if your toothache disappears with at-home treatment. According to Dr. Rasubala, tooth pain may be an early indicator of tooth decay or an abscess that has to be treated before things become worse.
