What Counts as a Dental Emergency During This Pandemic

Should I Go to the Dentist During this Pandemic?

Since the beginning of the Coronavirus pandemic I have been monitoring this situation very closely and seriously, keeping up with the precautionary and safety standards for my patients, staff and everyone's loved ones. As my sworn duty as a doctor and health care provider, I have and will continue to assist with the relief of pain and management of infection with all my existing and those referred in order to keep people out of hospitals and emergency departments. In order to do this, I have been answering calls and having virtual (teledentistry) consultations from home in order to protect my patient's livelihood and in order to do our part for the community in flattening the cure. 

As the spread of COVID-19 continues, we have received several questions from our patients and their friends asking if they should go or postpone their dental visits. 

Remember, social distancing is key to controlling the spread of Coronavirus. At the same time, the key to your optimal health is to make sure you don’t end up with any dental infections. As someone who has the first-hand experience of seeing patients suffer due to letting infections play out, we suggest that all of our patients and their friends call me or their dentist if they experience pain, swelling, or discomfort. Presently, dentists across the United States have been recommended to see only those patients with dental emergencies and infection, and those of us responsible in California are doing just that.

Some examples of dental emergencies are:

• Wisdom tooth infection (your mouth might not open fully or you may experience a bad taste in your mouth)
• Root Canal Treatment (RCT) to treat pain
• Severe, throbbing pain in your jaw
• Infection of the face with intra-oral or extra-oral swelling
• Severe trauma to the teeth or jaw
• Denture adjustment on radiation/oncology patients
• Denture adjustments or repairs when you can’t chew due to lacerations and ulcers
• Severe dental pain from pulpal inflammation.
• Dry socket pain and inflammation
• Abscess or localized bacterial infection resulting in localized pain and swelling to the face or gums
• Dental trauma with loose teeth/ tooth loss.
• Dental restoration/ crown cementation if the temporary crown is fully lost or broken 
• Replacing temporary filling on RCT access openings in patients experiencing pain

IF YOU HAVE A DENTAL EMERGENCY/ UNABLE TO GO TO THE DENTIST, WE ARE SCHEDULING PHONE CALLS/ VIDEO CONFERENCING IN ORDER TO PLAN THE NEXT STEP OR ADVISE YOU ON WHAT TO DO UNTIL I AM ABLE TO TREAT YOU.