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4344 Woodland Blvd Suite 200, Castle Rock, CO, 80104 (303) 688-9519

Emergency Dentist Castle Rock

Solutions for Urgent Dental Pain

Woman touching her cheek in pain while visiting emergency dentist in Castle Rock

Do you have a dental issue that you simply can’t afford to ignore? We encourage you to call our team at Sweet Smiles Dental Design right away to let us know what happened. Once you get to our dental office, Dr. Fitzgerald can take a look at your smile, figure out what the issue is, and determine the fastest way to help you find lasting relief. You can trust our Castle Rock emergency dentist and team whenever you’re in a situation where urgent dental care is needed.

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The Most Common Dental Emergencies

When you’re not sure whether you need emergency dental care, it helps to have a general idea of what types of dental issues are considered urgent. Below are some common examples of dental emergencies that need to be dealt with in a timely manner. In general, we recommend calling us if you have any doubts about your oral health.

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How We Treat Dental Emergencies

Woman in dental chair holding her cheek in pain

  • Emergency Appointment: We’ll try to see you as soon as we can whenever you’re experiencing a dental emergency. During your initial call, we can give you some advice for keeping your discomfort under control and preventing the damage from growing worse.
  • A Thorough Examination: Our team needs to understand the underlying cause of your emergency first, so once you get to our office, we will carefully examine your teeth and gums. We might also take X-rays to check for damage in areas that can’t be seen with the naked eye.
  • Review Findings: We will explain what we found during our examination in clear detail so that you fully understand your situation. Then we will review your treatment options. Rest assured that we can give you an estimate of how much each treatment will likely cost.
  • Customized Treatment: The final step is to relieve your pain and restore your oral health with the agreed-upon treatments.

Understanding the Cost of Dental Emergencies

Woman touching her cheek and wincing while talking to dentist

What’s the nature of your dental emergency? How severe is it? What options are available for treating it? These are just a few of the questions that we’ll have to answer before we can give you an estimate of the overall cost of your emergency dental care. Rest assured that we will only suggest treatments that we believe are truly necessary for getting your oral health back on track. Let us know right away if you have questions or concerns regarding the cost of your emergency care.

Keys to Preventing Dental Emergencies

Close up of person brushing their teeth

While we’re more than happy to help when an emergency strikes, we also want you to be able to keep your risk of suffering from any kind of dental issue to a minimum. We recommend that you protect your smile by:

  • Scheduling a dental checkup and cleaning once every six months.
  • Brushing your teeth at least two times a day.
  • Flossing daily.
  • Maintaining a balanced diet.
  • Wearing a mouthguard when playing sports.

Toothaches  

Is My Toothache a Dental Emergency? Although toothaches should never be ignored, they don’t always warrant a same-day visit to our office either. The best thing to do is assess your symptoms. If your discomfort is worsening, it’s lasted for more than 24 hours, or it’s present in tandem with other warning signs of dental damage, like pain when biting down, call us right away.

How You Should Handle a Toothache To alleviate your discomfort, stick to soft foods, rinse periodically with warm saltwater, and use a cold compress for 10 minutes at a time. Of course, you can also take an OTC pain reliever as instructed, but the only way to get the long-term relief you deserve is by coming in for the necessary restorative care.

How We Treat Toothaches Toothaches can be treated in several ways – from tooth-colored fillings to root canal therapy. Ultimately, the restorative treatment we recommend for you will depend on a few important factors, including the extent of the damage.

Chipped Teeth  

Is a Chipped Tooth a Dental Emergency? While you may not need to come in right away, you should schedule an appointment within the next few days. This is important because we need to examine the tooth and intervene with the necessary care before an infection develops or the tooth breaks further.

How You Should Handle a Chipped Tooth In addition to avoiding crunchy, hard, and sticky foods, we recommend using clean, lukewarm water to rinse your mouth thoroughly. This will clear away debris from the area and also remove lingering shards of your tooth.

How We Treat Chipped Teeth Cosmetic dental bonding is one option, which is not only affordable but incredibly quick. Veneers are another option since they can conceal even more significant chips, and the results can last for a decade or more with proper care.

Cracked Tooth  

Is a Cracked Tooth a Dental Emergency? Yes, whether the crack is large or isn’t visible to the naked eye, it warrants immediate treatment from our Castle Rock emergency dentist. So, don’t wait – give us a call right away to explain your situation and schedule an appointment.

How You Should Handle a Cracked Tooth First, do not place any pressure on the tooth. Second, keep the tooth clean by periodically rinsing your mouth with clean, room-temperature water. Third, take OTC pain medication as directed in the short-term and get to our office ASAP for treatment.

How We Treat Cracked Teeth Sometimes, a dental crown can be used to protect your tooth moving forward. Other times, our only option is gently removing the tooth before putting a tooth-replacement solution in its place, like a dental implant.

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Very Sensitive Teeth  

Are Very Sensitive Teeth a Dental Emergency? If dental sensitivity is something you’ve always struggled with, then a same-day visit with our emergency dentist may not be necessary. If, on the other hand, the sensation is completely new, it’s getting worse, or it doesn’t seem to be stemming from anything specific, then you shouldn’t hesitate to reach out to our Castle Rock dental team.

How You Should Handle Very Sensitive Teeth Until your emergency exam, there’s really only one thing you can do: try to avoid anything that will exacerbate your discomfort. That includes drinking hot beverages as well as eating cold, spicy, acidic, or sugary foods.

How We Treat Very Sensitive Teeth Sometimes, untreated tooth decay or an advanced stage of gum disease is the root of the problem. Other times, all that’s needed is a change to your oral hygiene regimen, like using a desensitizing toothpaste.

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Knocked-Out Tooth  

Is My Knocked-Out Tooth a Dental Emergency? A knocked-out tooth is definitely a dental emergency because there’s really only about a 60-minute window of time where we can save your tooth. In other words, in order to have the highest chances of saving your tooth, our emergency dentist in Castle Rock needs to intervene with the necessary restorative care ASAP.

How You Should Handle a Knocked-Out Tooth There are three priorities: calling us to schedule an appointment, finding the tooth, and preserving the root surface cells. If you’re unsure how to handle the last part, it’s relatively easy. You can either place the tooth back in its socket or place it in a clean container filled with milk.

How We Treat Knocked-Out Teeth If everything goes right, like you’re able to find your tooth and get to our office within the hour, there’s a good chance that one of our exceptional emergency dentists will be able to save your tooth. If that’s not possible, then you’ll be happy to hear that there’s another way to rebuild your smile: dental implants.

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Lost Filling or Crown  

Is a Lost Filling or Crown a Dental Emergency? Whether your restoration is slightly loose, on the brink of falling out, or is no longer in place, you shouldn’t hesitate to contact our Castle Rock dental office to schedule an emergency visit. That way, we can quickly intervene with the necessary care before your tooth sustains further damage.

How You Should Handle a Lost Filling or Crown Use a small, clean container to store your filling or crown (if you have it). Additionally, rinse your mouth with clean, room-temperature water, don’t chew on that side of your mouth, avoid crunchy, hard, and sticky foods, and take OTC pain medication as directed for short-term relief.

How We Treat Lost Fillings or Crowns There’s more than one way to handle this dental emergency. For example, if your existing dental crown is in poor shape, then having a new one made may be the best option. If your existing dental crown is in great condition, on the other hand, then re-cementing it back in place may be the solution.

Broken Denture

Is My Broken Denture a Dental Emergency? Since a broken denture makes it difficult to chew and prevents it from fitting properly, the answer is “yes!” The best thing to do is call us ASAP. We’ll schedule an appointment with our Castle Rock emergency dentist from there.

How You Should Handle a Broken Denture In addition to calling us, we recommend putting your denture (or the pieces of your denture) in a clean container for safekeeping. Until your appointment, choose soft foods over crunchy, hard, and sticky ones.

How We Treat Broken Dentures Sometimes, we can repair dentures at our office. Other times, the damage is so extensive that they simply need to be replaced.

Loose Permanent Tooth

Is a Loose Permanent Tooth a Dental Emergency? Yes, a loose permanent tooth is a dental emergency – always. Remember, with each passing minute, the tooth is more likely to fall out. So, you need to contact our Castle Rock dental team ASAP to schedule an emergency exam.

How You Should Handle Loose Permanent Teeth We mentioned above that you should schedule an emergency exam with us. Outside of that, make sure not to chew on that side of your mouth, avoid crunchy, spicy, and acidic foods, and take OTC pain medication as directed.

How We Treat Loose Permanent Teeth First, we will see if we can save your tooth with a dental splint. If we can’t, then we may need to extract it. If that’s the case, then we will also work on replacing the tooth with a dental bridge, denture, or dental implant.

Injury to the Gums, Lips, or Tongue

Is an Injury to the Gums, Lips, or Tongue a Dental Emergency? Soft tissue injuries can be a bit stressful because they can happen in an instant and result in a lot of blood. The good news is that they can usually be handled at home relatively easily.

How You Should Handle an Injury to the Gums, Lips, or Tongue First, go to the sink and rinse your mouth gently with clean, cool water. Then, locate the cut and use a damp, clean washcloth (or gauze) to apply pressure. Within 10 minutes, the bleeding should stop, and you can use a cold compress at that point.

How We Treat Injuries to the Gums, Lips, or Tongue Most of the time, soft tissue injuries can be handled at home. If the cut is so large or the bleeding is so severe that that’s not the case, then you should go to the ER or call 911 instead.

Jaw Pain

Is Jaw Pain a Dental Emergency? Sometimes, jaw pain is a dental emergency! If, for example, the pain has progressed to the point where it’s making it difficult to concentrate, sleep, and chew, then you shouldn’t hesitate to schedule an emergency exam.

How You Should Handle Jaw Pain Fortunately, there are a few things you can do to manage your discomfort until your appointment with us, including using a cold compress, eating soft foods, and taking OTC pain medication as directed.

How We Treat Jaw Pain Although two patients may visit us with the same symptoms, the root of the problem could be completely different. That’s why we need to conduct a comprehensive oral exam first; we need to determine if impacted wisdom teeth, TMJ dysfunction, or chronic teeth grinding is the root of the problem.

Something Stuck Between the Teeth

Did you accidentally get something stuck between your teeth? Although it might be tempting, do NOT use a toothpick, tweezers, a pocketknife, or anything else sharp. Instead, dissolve some salt in warm water, rinse with the mixture, and floss. If that doesn’t do the trick, then contact us to schedule an appointment.