DFDFS
YOUR GUIDE FOR DENTAL EMERGENCIES DURING COVID-19
This guide will help you handle nearly all dental emergencies on your own from home. Stick this guide on your fridge — you never know when you might need it!
No Urgent Treatment if …
Try These Tips First at Home …
Call Us Promptly if …
Lightly pack a small piece of sugarless gum into the opening to buy you some time.
The broken piece is more than 1/4 of the entire tooth or if it’s cutting your tongue or cheek, mobile, or painful. (See PAIN section)
The broken piece is not very large and not painful.
BROKEN TEETH
Apply a dab of Sensodyne toothpaste to the area a few times a day. Take 400 mg of ibuprofen (Advil) every 4 hours, or 1,000 mg of acetaminophen (Tylenol) every 6 hours.
There is severe pain that appears out of nowhere, throbs on its own, or keeps you up at night.
There is mild sensitivity to things like cold or sweets.
PAIN
The swelling is visible on the outside of your face, has pus, or is not getting better within 3 or 4 days. (Go to the ER right away if you are having trouble breathing.)
Apply an ice pack in 20-minute intervals (20 minutes on, 20 minutes off).
The swelling is smaller than a pea.
SWELLING
Bite firmly on some gauze or a clean, wet washcloth or a moistened tea bag. Rinse lightly with Listerine 3 times a day. Take pain medication as needed (see PAIN section). It will likely feel much better in 3 to 4 days.
There is bleeding when you brush and floss, but it does not last for more than 30 minutes.
The bleeding lasts longer than 30 minutes or it’s pulsing out or your mouth is filling up with blood.
BLEEDING
The tooth has moderate soreness or wiggles about 1–2 mm.
The tooth is severely broken or painful or it wiggles more than 2 mm or falls out completely.
TRAUMA
Important!
• If your child has a dental emergency and you are not sure what to do, then call right away!
• Please do not go to your hospital emergency room for a dental emergency (unless you are having difficulty breathing). The hospitals need to reserve space, labor, and supplies to deal with COVID-19.
2 • www .JonesSmiles. com
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