Friday, November 27, 2015

I Need an Emergency Dentist Near Me. Can You Help?

Emergency DentistIf you have thought, I need an emergency dentist near me, you have already taken the first step toward getting the care you need. Most people do not consider an emergency dentist until they wake up with a sudden toothache or chip a tooth during a weekend softball game. Once the discomfort starts or the damage has been done, it is difficult to think clearly, and most people end up visiting the emergency room as a result. While they can help to stop the bleeding or give you pain medication, they are not trained in how to treat or restore teeth we are. As such, we highly recommend you add our phone number to your contacts and call us in an emergency situation.

We are available to treat you outside normal business hours, so you do not need to live with discomfort. This can help you to get past your situation and back to your normal routine in a hurry. While we welcome your calls, we also want to encourage you to take steps to avoid an emergency in the first place. While most people think of our services after a major, traumatic event like a car wreck, we have found that routine activities are often what lead to a dental emergency. With that in mind, here are a few habits you should avoid.

Opening things with your teeth. We have gotten many calls from people saying, "I need an emergency dentist near me to treat my chipped tooth." Many of these calls come after someone tried to open a bag with their teeth. While your teeth are strong, they have been designed to chew food. You can prevent discomfort and save yourself time by grabbing scissors instead.

Not wearing a mouthguard. Many teeth are damaged while playing sports. A mouthguard is the only real way to protect them, because the guard acts like a barrier, keeping your teeth in place and protected. Otherwise, a flying elbow or runaway ball could knock out an unsuspecting tooth.

Grinding your teeth. This can create the need for an emergency dentist for several reasons. Grinding can cause your natural teeth and restorations to become cracked or chipped. It can also lead to TMJ symptoms like a sore jaw. If you wake up with headaches or jaw and face pain and do not treat the condition, you could wake up unable to open your mouth at all. This will not happen right away, but over time, it is possible. We recommend wearing a night guard to prevent grinding and avoid this possibility.

Chewing on ice. If you have ever bitten down on ice and felt immediate pain, you could have chipped your tooth or worn away the enamel on them. Ice is hard and dangerous for your teeth. Many people have called saying, "I need an emergency dentist near me," after cracking a tooth. This routine activity needs to be avoided.

Regardless of why your tooth hurts or becomes damaged, we can solve the problem and help you to feel better again.

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Tuesday, November 3, 2015

Keep Your Kids Healthy With Help From a Pediatric Dentistry

Pediatric DentistryThe biggest challenge a pediatric dentistry faces does not come in the form of cavities, but in parents who do not realize how prevalent pediatric dental disease is. When you start to look at the number of children who have a pediatric dental disease, also known as childhood tooth decay, it is quite alarming. Over 25 percent of children between the ages two and five experience tooth decay, and when you look at data for children between the ages of 12 and 15, that number jumps to 50 percent. Essentially, this means that one in two preteens and young teens have tooth decay. Childhood tooth decay is a problem far more prevalent than other diseases we pay more attention to, like asthma and hay fever. Comparatively, five children will have tooth decay versus asthma, and seven will have tooth decay versus hay fever. If you were to ask a pediatric dentistry, you would find that most of this decay sets in at an early age, mostly because parents do not bring their children in for early childhood checkups with the dentist like they do with a pediatrician. Eighty-nine percent of children will have seen their pediatrician before their second birthday while only 1.5 percent of children in the same age category will have seen a pediatric dentistry. Part of the reason for this problem is that over 20 million children in the US do not have the proper dental coverage, leading to parents who simply are unable bring their children in to see their dentist.

For a pediatric dentist, it can be slightly frustrating to see children who are not receiving the care they need at an early age. This is because early prevention will not only save your children discomfort, but it is also far more cost-effective. For every $1 you spend with your pediatric dentist on preventative medicine, studies have shown you can save up to $50 on future emergency dental situations and the need for restorative procedures. Unfortunately, children also lose a great deal of productivity due to their needing to have restorations and finding themselves in emergency dental situations. In fact, over 2.26 million school days will be missed each year by children spending time in the dentist chair for non-maintenance related care. This is extremely unfortunate since it doesn't take much for you to keep your children out of this kind of situation. Simple rules like the 2-2-2 rule can help your child avoid future problems.

The 2-2-2 rule consists of three simple steps. Step one is to make sure your child is brushing their teeth at least twice per day. This is a standard rule for anyone brushing your teeth, and one all children should be taught how to follow. In addition, you must make sure your children are brushing their teeth for at least two minutes to get them properly clean. Finally, you must take your child in to see their pediatric dentist at least twice per year.

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