What to do in a Dental Emergency.

Dental emergencies can happen suddenly and often, it seems, at the worst possible moment. You may chip your tooth while eating dinner during the holidays or find yourself suffering from excruciating tooth pain in the middle of the night.
What do you do?
Don’t ignore your pain. It’s important that you call your dentist as soon as possible. A toothache could be a sign of a serious problem, like a bacterial infection, and may need to be taken care of quickly.
But until you can see a dentist, here are some tips that can help you at home before your dentist office is open:
Don’t take aspirin. Avoid aspirin because the pain medication can slow clotting. If you need a painkiller, take ibuprofen or naproxen sodium.
Reduce pain and swelling. Apply an ice pack to your check to help soothe the pain and reduce swelling. If you have clove oil or fresh cloves in your spice rack, use them as a natural pain reliever on the affected area.
Remove any debris around the damaged tooth. Flossing gently can help remove any irritants that could be causing pain. Gargling with warm salt water can help reduce pain and swelling.
If your tooth is broken, rinse with warm salt water and apply gentle pressure to your gums – not the tooth — to stop any bleeding. Save any tooth fragments and bring them to the dentist with you, storing them in salt water or milk. Your local pharmacy may have temporary filling material that you can use to protect your broken tooth. If your tooth was knocked out, put the tooth back into the socket and hold in place until you can get to the dentist quickly. A tooth may be saved if you can get to a dentist within a half-hour. If you can’t get to a dentist, call your hospital emergency room.
If you don’t have dental insurance and find yourself with a dental emergency, affordable dental plans through AmeriPlan USA can help. The discount dental plans offer low cost monthly fees and can be purchased and used immediately with no waiting period. Most common dental procedures are deeply discounted for AmeriPlan USA members, who often receive 25 percent to 80 percent off their dental bills, including emergency dental visits. There are no upper age limits on discount dental plans, and the discounts can be used as often as needed with no restrictions.
Discount dental plans offered through AmeriPlan USA start as low as $14.95 per individual per month and $19.95 per month for an entire household.
To learn more about affordable dental plans, visit.Ameriplan dental