A dental problem is one that requires immediate treatment in order to save a tooth, stop ongoing tissue bleeding or alleviate severe pain is considered a dental emergency.

A severe infection or abscess in the mouth can be life-threatening and should be dealt with immediately. Your dentist might be able to perform the first stage of a root canal, or will refer you to an endodontist (root canal specialist) to open and drain the tooth and allow the abscess to drain. If your dentist can’t be reached, seek hospital emergency room care.

Dental Crisis Treatment

Many people don’t see a dentist on a regular basis. They go only when they feel they have a problem. At Radiant Dental we call this “crisis treatment” as opposed to “preventive treatment”.

While these patients may feel they are saving money, it usually ends up costing much more in both dollars and time. The reason for this is that most dental problems don’t have any symptoms until they reach the advanced stages.

An example is tooth decay. At Radiant Dental we hear all the time, “Nothing hurts… I don’t have any problems”. But tooth decay doesn’t hurt! Until, that is, it gets close to the nerve of the tooth.

Then a root canal and crown are usually necessary, instead of the small filling, which could have been placed several years ago when the cavity was small. We can usually detect a cavity 3-4 years before it may develop any symptoms. It is not uncommon to see a patient with a tremendous cavity and they have never felt a thing!