Emergency Dentist Braintree
Get the Care You Need from a Team You Trust
We understand that accidents can happen, leaving you in pain and anxious about the issue you’re experiencing becoming worse. That’s why Dr. Salem and our multidisciplinary team of specialists offer same-day care whenever possible for emergency situations. If you have out-of-the-ordinary symptoms or dental discomfort, don’t hesitate to call our office directly to get the timely care you need and deserve from our emergency dentists in Braintree.
Why Choose Dr. George Salem and Associates, PC of Braintree for Emergency Dentistry?
- Same-Day Emergency Appointments When Available
- Multiple Flexible Payment Options
- Expertly Administered Dental Sedation
How We Treat Dental Emergencies
- Call Us: It can be difficult to know what situation requires emergency treatment, which is why we always recommend calling our team whenever you’re in doubt. Our knowledgeable and friendly front desk staff can schedule an appointment for you as soon as possible. We’ll also provide you with over-the-phone first aid guidance to keep the problem from progressing any further.
- Come In: As soon as you arrive at our office, we’ll jump into action collecting any necessary diagnostic images and examining your teeth and gums. Based on our findings, we can diagnose the problem at-hand and explain it to you.
- Get Treated: Once we make a diagnosis, we can create a customized treatment plan that we can walk you through, so you know exactly what to expect. We’ll also answer any questions you may have before moving forward with our recommended course of action.
The Most Common Dental Emergencies
Below, we have outlined some of the most common dental emergencies that we treat. Regardless of whether your specific situation is listed, we invite you to call our office if you find that you may need emergency dental care.
Understanding the Cost of Emergency Dentistry
If you’ve developed an oral issue that requires immediate attention, the last thing you want to worry about is how much it will cost to repair. However, many patients fear that they might not be able to afford the required services and want to know what to expect in advance.
Several factors can affect your invoice, so we can’t provide detailed information until our Dr. George Salem and Associates team can examine you. Then, we’ll recommend appropriate treatment plans and provide pricing based on our findings. Continue reading to learn more about how the cost of dental emergencies is calculated, and feel free to contact us for additional information.
Every Dental Emergency is Unique
It’s practically impossible to provide an accurate idea of what you can expect to pay for your dental emergency until we’ve identified the issue and can suggest potential solutions. Some problems can be handled effectively with relatively non-invasive and cost-effective options. For instance, a toothache from a cavity might only require a tooth-colored filling to fix the damage.
However, other more severe concerns may need more complicated and involved procedures, like a root canal to remove infection from a decayed or injured tooth. If you require additional restorations or replacement teeth, that can also increase the total due.
Does Dental Insurance Cover Dental Emergencies?
Most dental insurance policies include provisions for urgent scenarios; for example, many plans include one complimentary emergency exam per year. Other major services that might be required, like root canal therapy, extractions, and restorations, often receive anywhere from 50% to 80% coverage. Every plan is different, though, so it’s worth checking your details to know what’s available to you.
Please let us know if you’re struggling to find the information or need assistance with insurance claims or paperwork. Our friendly office staff are familiar with many providers and can help you maximize your benefits.
Other Options for Making Dental Emergencies Affordable
We know that many patients don’t carry dental insurance, but we don’t want your budget to keep you from receiving smile-saving care you deserve. To make emergency services more affordable, we’ve partnered with a third-party financer, CareCredit. If your application is approved, this program allows you to break up your total invoice into more manageable monthly installments that won’t break the bank.
Preventative Care Can Save You Money
Although some dental emergencies simply can’t be avoided, most of them result from decay, disease, or other injuries that were never addressed and could have been prevented. Investing in basic dental visits every six months allows our team to monitor your condition so that we can catch and treat any areas of concern before they progress.
Plus, most dental insurance policies include up to 100% of the cost of routine checkups and cleanings to encourage more people to develop healthy habits. That means scheduling regular appointments can preserve your grin and conserve your finances!
Keys to Preventing Dental Emergencies
Dental problems don’t usually resolve themselves and tend to only get worse over time, meaning that many emergencies likely could have been prevented. Investing in regular checkups and maintaining healthy habits now can avoid a potentially urgent situation to save you time, frustration, discomfort, and additional expenses to treat a problem that was allowed to progress.
Continue reading to learn a few easy ways you can safeguard your smile in the future, and feel free to contact us with any questions.
Visit Your Dentist Regularly
Visiting us every six months for a routine checkup and cleaning allows us to monitor your dental condition so we can catch and address any areas of concern before they do real harm. For example, if you show signs of weakening enamel, we can apply a topical fluoride treatment to strengthen the protective outer layer of your teeth before bacteria cause cavities.
We also screen the soft tissues of your mouth for oral cancer to preserve your dental and overall well-being.
Practice Consistent Hygiene Habits at Home
Regularly cleaning your teeth at home is essential to any preventative dental care routine. You should brush for a full two minutes twice daily, followed by flossing and rinsing with mouthwash. This is a simple but effective way to eradicate plaque and unhealthy germs that contribute to tooth decay, gum disease, and other issues.
Enjoy a Nutritious Diet
The food choices you make have a very real impact on the health of your teeth and gums. For instance, sugar attracts microbes that work in tandem with acids from the food you eat to erode your enamel, leading to cavities. Plus, darkly pigmented ingredients like coffee, tea, wine, berries, and tomatoes can leave stains behind.
To keep your grin looking and feeling great, why not opt for more wholesome meals that support your mouth? Dairy products like cheese and yogurt contain calcium for strong teeth and bones, while citrus fruits and leafy greens have high vitamin C content for healthy connective tissues.
Wear a Mouthguard
Chips, cracks, and other injuries that compromise the structure of your teeth leave them vulnerable to potential additional harm, like breaking further or becoming infected. If you participate in team sports or other close-contact or high-impact activities, we can provide a custom-fitted mouthguard to safeguard your smile if you take a blow to the face.
Unfortunately, chronic teeth grinding (bruxism) can also cause issues like fractures, overly worn enamel, and even bite misalignments. Wearing a nightguard shields you from all the added pressure of constantly clenching down.
Don’t Use Teeth as Tools
If you’ve ever felt tempted to tear open a letter or break the seal of a package with your teeth, you’re not alone. Enamel is the hardest substance in the human body, so you might think it’s safe to use them in this capacity.
However, your teeth are intended to bite into and grind food, not inanimate objects. You can avoid possible problems by taking a few minutes to locate the right tool for the job instead, like scissors or a letter opener.
Dental Emergency FAQs
Will My Toothache Go Away on Its Own?
Many patients experience anxiety around dental appointments, so they avoid seeing their dentist, even when they think they may have an emergency. For example, if you have a toothache, you might think that if you give it enough time it’ll simply clear up on its own. Unfortunately, the truth is most dental issues don’t resolve themselves and only worsen over time.
There are many potential causes behind your discomfort, and you can’t know how urgent your situation is until the underlying problem is identified. Our team can suggest appropriate solutions to alleviate your pain once we’ve had the chance to examine your condition. Seeing us sooner rather than later helps us address the issue before it progresses and requires more complex and costly treatments.
Should I Visit the ER First for Dental Emergencies?
If you’ve broken an arm or a leg, you likely already know that the best way to get help is to head to the closest emergency room. But what about a broken tooth or restoration? Should you get help from an urgent care center nearby, or wait until your dentist is available?
Usually, it’s best to contact your dentist first because they’re specialists with the right experience and equipment to handle oral issues. However, there are a few exceptions. You should visit the ER immediately if:
- You experience heavy bleeding that doesn’t slow or stop with firm pressure.
- Your jaw was fractured or dislocated.
- You have an abscess or infection that has swollen so much that it affects your ability to breathe or swallow.
How Should I Sleep With Tooth Pain?
Try though you might, you can never predict when a dental emergency might occur. Plenty of people have injured their mouths or developed a toothache during evening hours and must struggle to get through the night until they can call their dentist the next day. The following tips can help you get some much-needed rest until daylight:
- Keep your head elevated. This prevents blood from pooling and increasing the pressure placed on your sore teeth.
- Take medications. It’s usually safe to take over-the-counter options like Tylenol or ibuprofen to reduce symptoms. You might also benefit from a small amount of oral gel with benzocaine to numb your gums.
- Place a cold compress. Holding an ice pack to the tender side of your face for 15 minutes at a time can provide a brief reprieve.
Do I Need to Visit for Minor Chips in My Teeth?
You might think of minor injuries to your teeth as a mere aesthetic annoyance rather than an actual concern. However, once the structure of your enamel is compromised, bacteria are more likely to penetrate into the tender pulp inside and cause issues. You’re more vulnerable to tooth decay, gum disease, and additional breakage until it’s treated.
Plus, you can’t determine the extent of the damage on your own at home. Our team can examine your condition to identify what happened and how to best address the underlying issue.
I Need a Checkup & Cleaning I Need Help With My Gums I Have a Cavity or Broken Tooth I am Missing One or More Teeth I Want to Enhance My Smile I Want a Straighter Smile I am Scared of the Dentist View Our Services