When To Seek An Emergency Dentist Cheadle Hulme

13 August 2016

When To Seek An Emergency Dentist Cheadle Hulme

Most of us know what we should do when confronted with a medical emergency but how about a dental emergency? When should you contact an emergency dentist Cheadle Hulme?

At  we’re a private dentist in Cheadle Hulme and as such we have an emergency dentist available during non-working hours for those who have a genuine dental emergency and need immediate help. Thankfully dental emergencies are few and far between for many of us but that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t really be concerned about them. On the contrary by understanding what you need to do, and more importantly when you should call, you stand a far greater chance of being treated at the right time.

First of all let’s take a closer look at when you should call…

A dental emergency can be reported any time of the day or night, and during normal working hours a busy dentist will normally schedule in time to deal with dental emergencies. During non-working hours (normally 8pm to 9am) patients should remember to contact an emergency dental number (usually a mobile phone number) and not the normal number of the clinic.

Now you know when to call – How about why?

There are in fact a number of occasions when you may need to contact an emergency dentist and these normally fall into two categories. The first being visible damage to your teeth and the second being the onset of pain.

Visible damage to teeth can be caused by a number of reasons including a blow to the face when  playing sport, as a result of an accident, or through biting down unexpectedly on a hard or crunchy item. These scenarios may result in a number of outcomes including

• Cracked teeth
• Chipped teeth
• Teeth that are made loose
• Teeth that have been dislodged completely
• Teeth that have been knocked up into the roof of the mouth

Here at our Church Road dental practice we set aside time out of our busy schedule during working hours to deal with emergency dental patients. On these occasions when you’ve experienced any of the above then we’ll do all that we can to get you an appointment that same day. However if it’s out of hours, then we”ll first of all assess the situation over the phone and make a decision as to whether you need treatment there and then. Conversely if it’s deemed serious, but not an emergency such as a cracked or chipped tooth, the dentist may look to treat it the next morning.

Tooth pain is another scenario which may or may not constitute a full-on dental emergency. Again if it’s during working hours and the pain can be relieved slightly using over the counter pain killers our dentist in Cheadle Hulme will try to fit you in that very same day. However if it’s during non-working hours, the onset of pain is sudden and unbearable and cannot be relieved using similar medication, then the dentist may decide to see you right away.

Often the problem is caused by an abscess. In this case the dentist will clean out the infection and prescribe a course of antibiotics. That is if the infection is on or around the gum. Alternatively, if the infection is found to be inside the tooth then it will probably need root canal treatment.

All of the above situations could be considered a dental emergency; but when should you not contact a  for a dental emergency?

How about a lost filling or broken crown?

While it’s true that a lost filling or a broken crown might seem like an emergency to you it doesn’t really constitute a dental emergency in the true sense of the word, unless there’s pain involved. For this reason patients should instead look to make an appointment during regular working hours to get it fixed at the earliest opportunity.

How about a loose dental implant?

Although a loose dental implant might not cause any pain, speed is of the essence, especially if it’s a newly placed implant. Call your emergencye and they’ll decide whether to treat you right away (if it’s out of hours) or to get you an appointment first thing in the morning.

If you have a dental problem and need to contact an emergency private dentist, Cheadle Hulme-based – Church Road Dental and Cosmetics are here to help. Contact us on 0161 486 0743 for further assistance.