Emergency Dentist San Antonio
Helping You Get Out of Pain as Soon as Possible
We understand that a broken tooth or tooth infection can surface at any moment, causing pain and compromising your oral health. In these cases, our team at Potranco Family Dental is committed to seeing you as soon as possible so we can get you feeling better and minimize any long-term damage to your smile. Call our office today if you need an emergency dentist in San Antonio.
Why Choose Potranco Family Dental for Emergency Dentistry?
- In-House Root Canals & Tooth Extractions
- We Accept & Maximize Dental Insurance
- Dentist with Over a Decade of Experience
How We Treat Dental Emergencies
- Call Our Team: As soon as you experience out-of-the-ordinary symptoms or dental pain, give our office a call. Our team will try to fit you into our schedule as soon as possible as well as provide you with first aid guidance over the phone.
- Come in for an Examination: When you arrive at our office, our team will gather your insurance information and medical history and guide you back to one of our operatories. Dr. AJ will examine your mouth as well as any necessary X-rays that were taken and diagnose the problem at-hand, as well as create a treatment plan.
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Get Treated: After walking you through his recommended treatment plan and answering any questions you may have, Dr. AJ may be able to complete the treatment the same day or at a time in the near future. It all depends on the treatment you require.
The Most Common Dental Emergencies
To help you determine whether a trip to an emergency dentist in San Antonio is necessary, our team has gathered some of the most common situations we treat below. However, we recommend calling our office in any case so we can help you make the best decision for your oral health.
Keys to Preventing Dental Emergencies
As your dental team, we aim to be here whenever you need us, whether you’re overdue for your six-month checkup or you’re struggling with a painful toothache. We also want to share what you can do to keep your smile healthy and reduce your risk of sustaining a serious dental injury. That’s why we’ve dedicated this section to the steps you can take to protect your teeth and gums from harm!
Visit Your Dentist Twice a Year
Sometimes, patients who take good care of their smiles at home assume that routine checkups and cleanings are optional. That’s not the case! During your biannual visits, Dr. AJ looks for common warning signs of oral cancer, tooth decay, and gum disease. He also takes a look at any existing dental work that you have to make sure it’s in good condition. Our dental hygienists spend time removing built-up plaque and tartar as well, which helps prevent common oral health problems moving forward.
Maintain Good Oral Hygiene At Home
Remember, brushing only cleans about 60% of the surface of your teeth. To clean the remaining 40%, you need to floss and rinse with mouthwash daily. In the process, make sure to keep time in mind. You need to brush your teeth for a full two minutes and rinse with mouthwash for 30-60 seconds (time yourself – it’s probably longer than you think!).
Eat Healthy, Well-Balanced Meals
Patients often forget this aspect of preventing common dental emergencies in San Antonio, but it’s crucial! After all, overindulging on sugary sweets can quickly lead to cavities, and eating crunchy foods can cause your enamel to chip or crack. That’s why it’s best to stick to healthy, well-balanced meals that are filled with seasonal fruits, fresh vegetables, lean proteins, and the like.
Wear a Mouthguard
It goes without saying that you should wear a mouthguard during contact sports. However, did you know that you should wear one if you ride your bike, lift weights, or play pickleball? This is important because all it takes is one bad fall or rogue ball to wind up with a serious dental injury. If you don’t have a mouthguard already, then schedule an appointment with our team at Potranco Family Dental so we can have a custom one made.
Break Harmful Habits
Lastly, we need to cover what you should NOT do. To begin, you should avoid all tobacco products. You also shouldn’t chew on ice cubes, bite your nails, or use your teeth as tools. After all, habits like these may seem harmless, but they can quickly lead to a serious (and painful!) dental injury.
Understanding the Cost of Emergency Dentistry
Like many other patients who need to visit our office suddenly, you might have questions about the care you need, including how much it costs. Fortunately, we’re here to help! After alleviating any pain you’re experiencing, we will complete a comprehensive oral exam, create your custom treatment plan, and provide you with an estimate of the price. If you want to learn more in the meantime, however, feel free to read on for some helpful information, including whether dental insurance providers typically cover a portion of the cost.
Why Every Dental Emergency is Different
The short answer is that no two situations are exactly the same! In order to determine the cost of your emergency dental care in San Antonio, we need to determine the type of dental injury you’ve sustained, how severe the damage is, and which restorative treatment is needed. Once we have all of this information, we can create your custom treatment plan, provide you with a price estimate, and discuss the different financial solutions that are available.
Does Dental Insurance Cover Dental Emergencies?
If you have dental insurance, then you’ll be happy to hear that our team at Potranco Family Dental welcomes several popular providers, including Ameritas, Cigna Dental, Humana, and MetLife. Better yet, we can assist with the process of understanding and utilizing your benefits. So, don’t hesitate to provide us with your membership information when you get to our office!
Other Options for Making Dental Emergencies Affordable
Don’t have dental insurance at the moment? That’s okay! At our office, there are other financial solutions that are available, including:
- Flexible Financing – Thanks to trusted third-party financiers, like CareCredit, you can break up the total cost of your treatment into smaller, more budget-friendly chunks.
- Special Offers – We’re proud to offer periodic specials throughout the year to help our patients save, like a limited exam and X-ray for $49.
How Taking Care Of Your Smile Can Save You Money
Although accidents can happen, many common dental injuries can be prevented. In other words, if you want to protect your smile from harm and your wallet from an unexpected bill, you need to take good care of your smile. That starts with daily habits, like brushing your teeth each morning, limiting your intake of added sugar, and flossing each night before you go to bed. You also need to schedule a dental checkup and cleaning every six months so we can catch any oral health problems that do arise early on.
Important reminder: If you suspect that something is wrong because you’re experiencing unusual symptoms, like bleeding when you floss, then it’s crucial that you contact our San Antonio dental team ASAP.
Dental Emergency FAQs
Will my toothache go away on its own?
You’re not alone if you’ve developed a toothache and are unsure whether it’s urgent enough to necessitate an emergency dental visit. But the truth is that your teeth don’t have blood vessels or other living cells like your bones do, so they don’t regenerate or heal themselves if they’ve been damaged.
That means your toothache is more likely to grow progressively worse than to improve itself over time. The sooner you contact our San Antonio office for an appointment, the faster we can assess your condition and devise a customized treatment plan to alleviate your discomfort and enhance your oral health.
Do chipped teeth require an emergency appointment?
Enamel may be the hardest substance produced by the human body, but that doesn’t mean it’s invincible. Unfortunately, any injury to the outermost layer of your teeth, including seemingly minor chips or cracks, can increase the risk of developing additional breaks, damage, disease, or decay. That means it’s better to contact us for an appointment sooner rather than later.
Not only that, but the damage done might extend farther or deeper than you can see with the naked eye. Meanwhile, Dr. AJ has the expertise and state-of-the-art technology to assess the full extent of any harm to provide an appropriate treatment plan if necessary.
How can I sleep with a toothache?
Our office has later hours and Saturday appointments available, but if you’ve developed a sudden or severe toothache in the evening when we’re closed or over the weekend, you may have to wait an evening or two before you can contact us for help.
If the throbbing in your mouth prevents you from getting some much-needed rest, you can try elevating your head at an angle or sleeping in your favorite recliner to prevent additional blood from pooling behind the affected tooth, which increases the pressure placed on its nerves.
You can also try applying a cold compress to the sore side of your face, rinsing your mouth with saltwater, or taking over-the-counter medications, such as acetaminophen or ibuprofen, to provide short-term relief and help you drift off at night.
If my toothache disappears, do I still need treatment?
Oral issues don’t usually fix themselves, and your toothache is no exception. You might think that your condition has spontaneously improved if your discomfort suddenly dissipates, but that’s not usually the case. Infection is one of the most common causes of severe tooth pain, and if the ache suddenly vanishes, it’s more likely that the disease finally did enough damage to the tender nerves inside that they can no longer transmit pain signals to the brain.
However, dental disease can be contagious and spread from one tooth to another, affect your jawbone, or even enter your bloodstream and travel to other areas of your body, causing harm. You’ll still require treatment to protect your oral and overall well-being.
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