Emergency Dentist — Assonet, MA

Toothaches

Is My Toothache a Dental Emergency? If you think that ignoring your toothache is a good idea, think again! After all, your pain receptors are designed to signal to you that something is wrong, so the worst thing you can do is put off scheduling an appointment with our Assonet emergency dentist. Instead, give us a call when you first notice discomfort when biting down, drinking hot coffee, etc.

How You Should Handle a Toothache Toothaches can be incredibly uncomfortable, which is why we recommend taking proactive steps to avoid exacerbating the pain. That starts with avoiding crunchy foods and extends to taking OTC pain medication as directed. Once you arrive at our office, we can intervene with the necessary treatment to provide you with the long-lasting relief you deserve.

How We Treat Toothaches After we take X-rays, conduct an oral exam, and pinpoint the root of the problem, we can review your treatment options, such as protecting a cracked tooth with a dental crown or addressing an infection with a root canal.

Chipped Teeth

Is a Chipped Tooth a Dental Emergency? Although it may not require immediate attention, a chipped tooth is a serious dental injury. We usually recommend scheduling an appointment within a day or two, even if the damage seems relatively minor.

How You Should Handle a Chipped Tooth Does your chipped tooth have a sharp edge? If so, then use some dental wax to cover it. That way, your gums, tongue, and lips aren’t accidentally cut. If you’re in pain, then you can also take an OTC pain reliever.

How We Treat Chipped Teeth To rebuild the structure of your tooth, we can use dental bonding or a veneer. If the chip is on a molar and substantial in size, then we may recommend a dental crown instead.

Cracked Tooth

Is a Cracked Tooth a Dental Emergency? Yes! One of the most common symptoms of a cracked tooth is pain when biting down. However, there are also cases where the damage is so significant that you can see it when inspecting your tooth. Either way, it warrants a same-day visit to our Assonet dental office.

How You Should Handle a Cracked Tooth Calling our team is a top priority, but so is rinsing your mouth thoroughly with clean water. This will help prevent bacteria from collecting on the tooth, which could result in an infection. It’s also important that you don’t eat anything like raw nuts, popcorn, or peanut brittle in the meantime since this can cause your tooth to break further.

How We Treat Cracked Teeth Fortunately, we can oftentimes save your tooth with the help of a dental crown. If the crack was the result of chronic teeth grinding or clenching, then we can also provide you with a custom nightguard to protect your teeth moving forward.

Very Sensitive Teeth

Are Very Sensitive Teeth a Dental Emergency? Very sensitive teeth aren’t always a dental emergency, but they can be a sign of an underlying issue like tooth decay, gum recession, or cracked enamel. If the sensitivity is sudden, severe, or accompanied by pain, it’s best to call us as soon as possible.

How You Should Handle Very Sensitive Teeth: First, you’ll want to avoid hot, cold, acidic, or sweet food and drinks, as they can trigger sharp pain. Next, use toothpaste designed for sensitive teeth, which can often provide temporary relief. Lastly, continue brushing and flossing your teeth as normal, but be gentle to avoid making the discomfort worse.

How We Treat Very Sensitive Teeth: Our approach depends on the cause of your sensitivity. We may recommend fluoride treatments to strengthen enamel, direct bonding to cover exposed roots, fillings to address cavities, or a nightguard to prevent teeth grinding. Whatever the cause, we will tailor the treatment to your specific needs to help you find relief and protect your pearly whites.

Knocked-Out Tooth

Is My Knocked-Out Tooth a Dental Emergency? Yes, a knocked-out tooth is a serious dental emergency that needs immediate care. Once the tooth has been avulsed, the chances of successfully saving and re-implanting the tooth decrease with time. Ideally, you’ll need to see us within 30 to 60 minutes for good odds of success.

How You Should Handle a Knocked-Out Tooth: If a tooth gets knocked out, carefully pick it up by the crown (the part that’s visible in your mouth), avoiding the root. Gently rinse the tooth with water if it’s dirty, but don’t scrub it or use soap! You’ll want to preserve any tissues still attached to it, if possible. Next, try to place the tooth back into its socket. If you can’t, store the tooth in a container of milk or saline solution to keep it moist. Don’t use water!

How We Treat Knocked-Out Teeth: When you arrive at our office, we will assess the condition of the tooth and the socket. If everything looks otherwise healthy, we will try to reinsert and stabilize it. If the tooth can’t be saved, we will discuss tooth replacement options like dental implants or bridges to restore your smile.

Lost Filling or Crown

Is a Lost Filling or Crown a Dental Emergency? A lost filling or crown isn’t always an emergency, but it does need to be taken care of as soon as possible. Without treatment and protection, your exposed tooth is vulnerable to further damage and decay.

How You Should Handle a Lost Filling or Crown: If you lose a filling or crown, keep the area clean and avoid chewing on that side of your mouth. You can use dental cement (available at most pharmacies) to temporarily reattach the crown or sugar-free gum to cover your tooth. Dental wax also works well for missing fillings as long as you change it daily.

How We Treat Lost Fillings or Crowns: Our team will assess the affected tooth and decide whether the original crown can be reused or if a new one needs to be made. For lost fillings, we will replace them with durable, dental-grade composite resin to restore the tooth’s function and protect it from further damage. Our goal is to provide a comfortable, effective solution to keep your smile healthy.

Broken Denture

• Is a broken denture a dental emergency? Wearing a broken denture can harm your gums or other soft oral tissues, but you also rely on them to eat and talk more effectively. We consider broken dentures an urgent matter, so call us right away!
• How to handle a broken denture: Because of the risk to your oral tissues, we don’t recommend putting a broken denture back in your mouth or attempting to repair it yourself. Schedule an appointment with us instead so we can get your appliance fixed as soon as possible.
• How we treat broken dentures: Fixing a broken denture will either involve making minor adjustments, filling in chips or cracks, or replacing it entirely if the damage is severe.

Loose Permanent Tooth  

• Are loose permanent teeth a dental emergency? Yes! If a permanent tooth is loose, it’s likely due to gum disease, injury, or another issue that should be treated promptly.
• How you should handle a loose permanent tooth: First, call our office to secure an emergency appointment. You can rinse your mouth with warm water if you’d like, but avoid touching, poking, prodding, or otherwise disturbing your loose tooth.
• How we treat loose permanent teeth: We might splint your tooth, and depending on the underlying issue, we can provide additional treatments to restore your oral health. In severe cases, the best option might be to extract your tooth, otherwise the problem could spread.

Injury to the Gums, Lips, or Tongue  

• Is an injury to the gums, lips, or tongue a dental emergency? It depends on the nature of your injury. We recommend that you call us and describe your symptoms in as much detail as possible. Once we have a better understanding of the situation, we can help you make the appropriate next-step arrangements.
• How you should handle an injury to the gums, lips, or tongue: Gently rinse your wound with water, then apply a clean cloth or gauze to any bleeding cuts. If the bleeding doesn’t stop after ten minutes or your cut is large, go to the ER instead – you may need extra help that they’re better equipped to handle.
• How we treat injuries to the gums, lips, or tongue: We can stitch small, shallow wounds for you, as well as examine your teeth and mouth. Your Assonet dental team will make sure you get the treatment you need!

Jaw Pain  

• Is jaw pain a dental emergency? No, but it’s still best to contact us if you notice that your jaw pain is a chronic issue. This could indicate that something’s amiss with your jaw or TMJ.
• How you should handle jaw pain: Taking over-the-counter pain medication can help alleviate your discomfort, while applying an ice pack can reduce swelling. However, if your jaw is broken or dislocated, you should go to the ER!
• How we treat jaw pain: Sometimes impacted wisdom teeth cause jaw aches and need to be extracted. If the underlying issue is teeth grinding or a TMJ disorder, though, we’d be happy to provide you with a special nightguard or TMJ therapy.

Something Stuck Between the Teeth  

When a popcorn kernel or other such debris gets stuck between your teeth, at-home flossing is usually enough to solve the problem. However, if a more concerning object is trapped, or you simply can’t remove it on your own, then we would consider that an emergency! Call our office, and we’ll carefully take out the object with our special tools.