Dr. Michelle talks dental emergencies and how best to deal with them. Learn more and schedule a same-day emergency appointment at:
https://jacksonvillebeachdentist.com/emergency-dental-care/
Dr. Michelle talks dental emergencies and how best to deal with them. Learn more and schedule a same-day emergency appointment at:
https://jacksonvillebeachdentist.com/emergency-dental-care/
Kevin (00:00):
Dr. Michelle DeFelice Hucke is with us live on air seven minutes after 11 o'clock. Today we're going to talk about dental emergencies. Dental emergencies, because guess what, folks? They happen
Dr. Michelle (00:13):
And it's summer.
Kevin (00:14):
I would think they happen more in the summer. Yes. Because we're outdoors, doing different outdoorsy things
Dr. Michelle (00:19):
And doing weird stuff that you don't usually do.
Kevin (00:22):
So I of course went immediately to the internet, the source of all truth, light and goodness. Absolutely. And found a list of 10 of the most common dental emergencies in the United States.
Dr. Michelle (00:34):
Oh dear.
Kevin (00:35):
Over the last 20 years, number one, you have fallen and you've injured your mouth. Yes.
Dr. Michelle (00:41):
That's pretty common.
Kevin (00:43):
So I think you could fall, I could see falling at the beach. You're climbing on rocks, you fall, you slip, you try to protect your mouth on the way down. That's your instant reflex, right?
Dr. Michelle (00:51):
Yeah. And hopefully you shred up your hands, not your face.
Kevin (00:54):
Yeah, right. But then you don't, and so tooth hits rock. It's like paper covers scissors. Right. I mean, it doesn't really work.
Dr. Michelle (01:05):
My most recent extensive emergency in that regard, and this is good for everyone listening, it was someone that was here from out of town and they were riding their bicycles right near my office. And the woman, they were lost because they were just visiting. And what she did was, while she was still pedaling her bicycle, she started to try to put her map on her phone. So that is not suggested because her bike just kind of bent in half and collapsed, and she smashed all her front teeth while she was on vacation. Wow. Thankfully, she did it in the front yard of one of my patients, and he kind of just led the two. It was a couple, led them over to the office and we had time available to put her mouth back together. One thing that we do very well at Jack Beach Family Dentistry is we do all dental services under one roof, and we also do same day sort of immediate crowns. So we were able to put some temporary crowns in our mouth, do a root canal, and then wire the teeth, bond them together so that they were only on day two of a two week trip, and they had rented a house for the whole time, and they were panicking, thinking they were going to have to immediately cancel their entire vacation and rush back home. So we saved the day, which was fun. It wasn't fun for her, but she was very grateful and they were really gracious about it and sent us cookies and stuff.
Kevin (02:50):
Oh, well, if you got cookies, you know, did a good job. If you're just tuning in, that's the voice of Dr. Michelle DeFelice Hucke. And she, of course, with Jax Beach's Family Dentistry, locally owned and operated right here in northeast Florida, you can reach them anytime, including for dental emergencies at (904) 247-0111. So I mean, would you go to the ER first or call your dentist first?
Dr. Michelle (03:16):
Yeah, no, the last thing in the world you want to do is go to the ER, especially if you have a kiddo and the tooth is knocked all the way out. So if you are, first of all, don't touch the root, but if you are holding onto the top of a tooth and there's a whole root attached and you suspect it's, or you're pretty sure it's a permanent front tooth of a kiddo? You want to quickly, as fast as possible, call the three, four, five dental offices that you're physically closest to, unless you're also close to your current dentist office, because they used to say that you have about an hour to get the tooth back in, but they're saying now that it's more like 15 or 20 minutes. So you don't have a lot of time and they're not going to help you in an ER. So yeah, time is of the essence, and you really even could appeal to the dental office that you're closest to. Pretty pleased. Can you get my child done quickly and put this tooth back in? Right.
Kevin (04:15):
And I would think they would normally be professionally responsive to that. Right?
Dr. Michelle (04:18):
You would hope. Yeah. I mean, you would really hope.
Kevin (04:20):
And I learned this from Dr. Michelle many, many years ago, if possible, put that tooth in some milk.
Dr. Michelle (04:27):
Yeah. I mean, the ideal thing, which sounds awful, especially depending on who it is that's listening, if your mom is not a doctor, I know the ideal thing is to rinse the tooth off, but not with tap water. Either milk or distilled water quickly and then put it back in the socket.
Kevin (04:50):
Yeah. Wow. Right. So for all you non biology majors out there, swallow hard.
Dr. Michelle (04:57):
Yeah. It keeps the cells alive. That's the problem with the tooth hanging out and you don't want the tooth to dry out. But I mean, most places in this area, don't put it in dap water. It'll kill every single thing on the surface.
Kevin (05:11):
Yeah. Because there's so much chlorine,
Dr. Michelle (05:12):
There's so many chemicals in dap water. So like distilled water or milk, I mean, the reason for the milk is that milk is neutral, right?
Kevin (05:20):
Well, once again, we're talking about dental emergencies tend of the most common, of course, falling, injuring your mouth, knocking your tooth out. Another one that pops up quite frequently is just pain. Pain that you don't really know why it hurts, but gosh darn it hurts. And that makes it a dental emergency.
Dr. Michelle (05:39):
Anytime that you're suddenly aware of an individual tooth, it's really important. Even if the pain, what we get over and over and over in the office is, well, I mean it doesn't hurt that much, but the problem is that that early sign of being aware of your upper right first molar different from the rest of your teeth is that early warning sign is probably a pretty advanced problem, even though the sensitivity isn't quote that painful. So the reason that time is of the essence is that that quickly, and I mean even in a 24 hour period, can become super painful. So you want to be really insistent, especially if you're not a patient at Jack's Beach's family dentistry, you want to be kind of, what's the word? Insistent
Kevin (06:31):
And persistent.
Dr. Michelle (06:32):
And persistent with the nice person that answers the phone at whatever dental office that you're calling. And you want to say to them, listen, you can even say you can blame it on me. I was listening to the radio show and Dr. Michelle said, I need to get in today. We see same day emergencies, and that's part of the reason that we see same day emergencies is because almost all dental disease has zero symptoms. So even when there's a mild symptom, it's usually an early warning sign to something really significant. So you do not want to ignore even mild symptoms.
Kevin (07:11):
Do offices ever ask you on the phone when you say, "hey, I'm suffering. I'm dealing with just a whole lot of mouth pain right now, tooth pain", give us a number. That pain threshold, zero to 10. Zero 10. Yeah. So wouldn't you just automatically say, this is a 10 plus so you can get in the door?
Dr. Michelle (07:26):
No, you don't want to lie. Lying is a bad idea.
Kevin (07:28):
We're not advocating lying.
Dr. Michelle (07:29):
Yeah, we're not advocating lying, but I mean on some levels you want to educate the person answering the phone. So yeah, I mean, I know I'm not in terrible pain, but I mean, one thing you could say is, which might be a fabrication a little bit, is, Hey, I was in a situation before where it was mild and then all of a sudden it was really bad and I just don't want to get into that.
Kevin (07:52):
Yeah. This could be a repeat occurrence, right? Another common dental emergency would be an infection. Sometimes I wonder if we know is regular patients, consumers if we know what an infection really is, right?
Dr. Michelle (08:05):
Yeah. That's the thing. I mean, most infections are painless, so you don't really know, and again, it would fall into the category of a mild symptom. That's really a big deal. So mouth infection is a big deal. It gets into your bloodstream. It can cause serious things like they say, 25% of heart failure is linked to some sort of tooth etiology, which is a big percentage. So yeah, you don't want to ignore anything. I mean, the one thing you might, if it's a gum infection, you might notice gum soreness when you're brushing or bleeding in a certain area when you're brushing that wasn't there before. You might notice a minor swelling. If there's a minor swelling, there's usually a big infection festering down below that's finally broken through the bone. Any feeling of pressure, even a mild symptom of you're biting and all of a sudden it's sore on that side to bite, those are all signs of infections or there's a little pimple up high on the gum that's usually near the end of the root. That's a tooth that could have been, I mean a lot of times those are infections that have been there 3, 4, 5 years and they finally break through the bone. If people aren't getting regular X-rays,
Kevin (09:29):
Not to go too far down the rabbit hole, but what causes these infections?
Dr. Michelle (09:34):
So I mean, a lot of times infections at the end of their root, it could be a past trauma. So you were a kid, you got hit in the mouth with a baseball bat, the teeth were bonded, and then 10 years later they're suddenly infected. I tell people every time they have a trauma to their front teeth, usually where the trauma is, that even though the nerve hasn't died currently at any point in your life, it can suddenly die and it can be decades later. So that's something to keep in mind. It can also be a tooth that was extensively decayed. You got a crown on it at that time, the nerve was fine, and then a couple years later, the nerve will die. And that's the reason. This is just a public information that is the reason. If you have an extensively restored mouth, and to me that means you have some crowns, you have fillings on say half a dozen teeth. You're the type of person that wants to get, you want to get a full mouth, even though it can be upsetting to get, you want to get that every three to five years. So that means not just the x-rays that you bite on to check for cavities, but you want to get x-rays of the ends of all your roots every three to five years because you could have an infection and you're going to be more prone to those that's asymptomatic and not good for your health.
Kevin (10:55):
Hey, if you're just tuning in, we're taking a little break from the music and we're talking with Dr. Michelle, and of course you can learn more about her and about the entire practice and the other dental doctors at Jax Beaches Family Dentistry by checking out the website, jacksonvillebeachdentist.com. You can also call with your dental emergency or just because, hey, you're new to town and you want to schedule your initial consultation, call 9 0 4 2 4 7 0 1 1 1. Another common dental emergency, extreme tooth sensitivity. Not just from having that ice cream sundae, but just persistent tooth sensitivity.
Dr. Michelle (11:33):
So that was what we were, I mean, it was what we were talking about earlier, but it's when it's gotten further down the road. So some people think, oh, well, all my teeth are sensitive. However, if it's that game, which one of these things is not like the other, that's the game we're constantly playing. In the dental chair, what we're trying to sort out is, okay, so your whole mouth sensitive, but all of a sudden, or for the last two weeks, you've noticed that that tooth on the upper left is more sensitive to cold, where you find yourself moving something that's cold to the other side of your mouth with your tongue or you're protecting that tooth. That's a really bad sign.
Kevin (12:13):
And obviously one, do not wait. Please, that would qualify as a dental emergency.
Dr. Michelle (12:18):
And here's the thing too, it's summer, right? So everyone's traveling, everyone's busy, and so now you're too busy to go to the dentist. But the problem is if you're too busy to go to the dentist and then you choose to travel and then that thing blows up on you, you're going to be super sad.
Kevin (12:33):
Super sad. That by the way, is a very technical dental term. So
Dr. Michelle (12:37):
Please have it checked before you travel. Do a travel check. You travel check your car, let's travel check our mouths.
Kevin (12:44):
Yeah, that is true. Yeah. We're going through the 10 most common dental emergencies here in the us. Number six on our top 10 list mouth sores. Nothing says getting ready for lunch, like a discussion about mouth sores. That would be an indication of a more than just a cold sore, right?
Dr. Michelle (13:01):
Well, so a cold sore would be a lip sore. Okay. Mouth sores. I mean, most of the time a mouth sore is you banged your mouth with your toothbrush or you bit down on a chip and stabbed yourself, or you burned the roof of your mouth. That's the most popular mouth sore. You burned the roof of your mouth with a piece of pizza. That was on my national board exam, the pizza burn. Oh
Kevin (13:26):
Yeah, you got that one right there.
Dr. Michelle (13:29):
So usually that's what mouth sores are from. But it could be that what I was talking about earlier where you actually have an infection at the end of the root of the tooth and it has come through. So that would create a mouth sore.
Kevin (13:41):
Okay, another dental emergency number seven on our top 10 list Abscessed gums.
Dr. Michelle (13:47):
Yeah, so that would be the gum infection. We kind of covered that earlier. So that's when you notice that you're brushing or you're flossing or you're using some picks or something, and all of a sudden it just feels more uncomfortable than the rest of your mouth. Then you notice the bleeding along with it.
Kevin (14:05):
And Dr. Michelle, what about just a broken tooth, but a chipped off tooth? Not one. In other words, where we lose the whole thing and you go and put it in the socket, but where we just chip our front tooth, chip
Dr. Michelle (14:14):
It. So a lot of people will do that because they're grinders. They clench and grind their teeth and they'll wake up and their front tooth will be chipped. There's a lot of reasons why that's good to investigate. Now, if that's not hurting and it's not normal appointment, that's not a like, oh God, I got to run into the dentist today, or the building's on fire kind of thing. Now, if it's a back tooth that has been rough for a while and you're aware that something's going on back there and you haven't been to the dentist in a while and a back tooth chips, I would say that's more urgent because that could be that you have a pretty large existing filling. You've got more decay around it now it's kind of imploding on itself. I wouldn't wait long on that. That could lead to a significant issue.
Kevin (15:03):
Hey, we're taking a break from the music and spending time with Dr. Michelle DeFelice hackey. We're talking about dental emergencies, many of which you may experience as we get into the heart of summer. If you have any questions or you are experiencing one of these, you can always call Jax Beaches Family Dentistry here locally at 9 0 4 2 4 7 0 1 1 1. That's 2 4 7 0 1 1 1. What about just bleeding in your mouth? I mean, suddenly your mouth starts bleeding. Maybe it's because of the gums or how you brush your teeth or whatever. Is that a dental emergency or something you just schedule within a normal timeframe?
Dr. Michelle (15:37):
I mean, it's usually just a warning sign. But again, if you're having a periodontal flare up, it can cause your face to swell. So it can be significant, especially if you fall into the category of somebody that has taken an extended dental vacation. So if you know that you haven't been in a while and now you're having bleeding in a certain area and the gums are sore, that's your body's way of telling you it's time.
Kevin (16:03):
The time has come to go to the dentist time.
Dr. Michelle (16:05):
Yes.
Kevin (16:06):
And we kind of hit on this before, but the number 10 on the top 10 list of most common dental emergencies in the United States over the last decade. Swelling.
Dr. Michelle (16:16):
Yes. Swelling is what we were talking about earlier where you either have a gum flare up or that infection at the end of the root has gotten bad enough where the infection wants to drain, right? So it's broken through the bone into the tissue, and if your face is swollen, that becomes a medical emergency also. So as quickly as possible, you want to get to the dentist. We see same day emergencies. There are a couple of other great emergency clinics in the area. So yeah, you want to get moving on that. And oh, please don't put heat on your face. You can put cold on your face, but don't put heat on your face.
Kevin (16:58):
We're all confused about that. The whole hot for this, cold for that.
Dr. Michelle (17:02):
Well, the problem with any kind of swelling is it's an infection, right? And if you put heat on an infection, the infection is going to drain toward the heat. So you do not want to drive infection in your mouth toward the outside of your face.
Kevin (17:18):
There you go. So just
Dr. Michelle (17:19):
At least don't do that.
Kevin (17:20):
So that's it. Those are our 10 common dental emergencies. Any of which of course could be addressed by the good folks at Jax Beaches, family Dentistry, Dr. Michelle DeFelice, Hucke, and her team. Of course, we encourage you to reach out, learn more by going to jacksonvillebeachdentist.com. That's jacksonville beach dentist.com. Dr. Michelle, thanks for all the good information. Thank you.