At Vista Dental Care, we’re here whenever our patients need us. If you or one of your loved ones is experiencing a dental emergency, we will likely be able to see you on the same day you contact us for emergency treatment. During these urgent care appointments, we’ll begin by working with you to relieve pain. Then, we’ll create a personalized dental restoration plan to fully renew your smile. You may not be able to plan for every dental emergency, but for patients of Vista Dental Care, you can count on our team to provide fast, effective emergency dentistry in Sparks.
Why Choose Vista Dental Care for Emergency Dentistry?
Same-Day Emergency Dental Appointments
Affordable In-Office Dental Membership Plan
Advanced & Precise Diagnostic Technology
What to Do in a Dental Emergency
Come in for an Examination: After calling our office, our team will schedule a same-day appointment for you to get you out of pain as soon as possible. We’ll also provide you with helpful over-the-phone first aid guidance. Once you arrive, our team will capture any necessary X-rays and examine your teeth and gums.
Have a Treatment Plan Created: Based on the findings of your exam by your emergency dentist in Sparks, our team will draw up a treatment plan for you and walk you through it. This will include what you can expect from the procedure, any cost-related details, and other important information. Our team will also answer any questions you may have.
Schedule & Complete Treatment: Once you agree to move forward with our recommended treatment plan and all of your questions have been addressed, our team may conduct the treatment the same day if it’s minor, or we’ll need to schedule another visit for as soon as possible.
The Most Common Dental Emergencies
If you’re experiencing toothache pain or have a damaged tooth, you are likely in need of urgent dental care. It’s always best to call our team, even if you’re not sure that your situation requires emergency care. The sooner we begin repairing your damaged smile, the better. Some of the common dental emergencies we see include:
Is My Toothache a Dental Emergency? That depends! If your toothache is persistent, it’s getting worse, or it’s present in tandem with other abnormal dental symptoms (like bleeding gums), you should call our Sparks dental team ASAP to schedule an emergency exam. On the other hand, if your symptoms are minor, scheduling an appointment within the next couple of weeks should be fine.
How You Should Handle a Toothache: At home, rinse with warm saltwater periodically, avoid acidic and sugary foods, use cold compresses, and take OTC pain medication as directed. Make sure to keep your head elevated while you sleep as well (this will help prevent blood from rushing to your head, exacerbating your symptoms in the process).
How We Treat Toothaches: The treatment we recommend will depend entirely on what’s causing your toothache. If it’s a small cavity, then a tooth-colored filling may be the answer. If it’s an infection, then root canal treatment and a dental crown may be needed instead. As always, we will review your treatment options (and our recommendations) at your appointment.
Is a Chipped Tooth a Dental Emergency? If the chip is significant enough that you’re experiencing sensitivity, soreness, and other unpleasant symptoms, then you should absolutely call us right away. If, on the other hand, your tooth feels completely fine, then simply schedule an exam with us within the next week or two.
How You Should Handle a Chipped Tooth: To prevent your tooth from breaking further, don’t eat anything crunchy, like hard pretzels or peanut brittle. If you’re experiencing sensitivity, then avoid acidic, sugary, and spicy foods as well. Lastly, cover the tooth with some sugar-free gum to reduce your risk of a soft tissue injury.
How We Treat Chipped Teeth: Both direct bonding and veneers are great at fixing chipped teeth. Ultimately, the one we recommend for you will depend on a few key factors, including the size of the chip.
Is a Cracked Tooth a Dental Emergency? Absolutely! After all, even a small crack can quickly develop an infection. Plus, even slight pressure can cause the crack to get larger. So, don’t wait; call our Sparks dental office right away.
How You Should Handle a Cracked Tooth: In addition to reaching out to us to schedule an emergency exam, we recommend avoiding hot beverages, spicy foods, and anything else that could make your symptoms worse. Additionally, rinse your mouth periodically with clean, room-temperature water, and do your best not to touch the tooth with your fingers.
How We Treat Cracked Teeth: Oftentimes, we can restore the look, health, and function of a cracked tooth with a dental crown (and we offer same-day restorations to make the process convenient and quick). Of course, if your tooth cannot be saved, then we will need to take a different approach: extracting the tooth before putting a dental bridge or implant in its place.
At Vista Dental Care, we’ll do our utmost to avoid removing natural dental structures, but there are some situations that make tooth extraction the best option to preserve optimal oral health. When necessary, we’ll remove these teeth safely and comfortably in our state-of-the-art Sparks dental office.
Root canals are necessary when damage or decay reaches the innermost layer of the tooth, where the nerves are housed. To relieve potential pain and repair this tooth, we use root canal therapy to remove the damaged tissues and replace them with similar, biocompatible substances. Root canals allow us to save teeth that may otherwise have been pulled.
It’s nearly impossible to give you a price estimate on how much it will cost to treat your dental emergency without coming in to see us first. This is because every emergency situation is different. Your treatment might range from a simple round of antibiotics to a more complex procedure like a root canal or even a tooth extraction. It all depends on the severity of your emergency. No matter how much your situation ends up costing, we will work with you to file insurance claims on your behalf so that you don’t have to lift a finger. If you don’t have dental insurance, we accept payments through third-party options like CareCredit and Cherry Financing.
Keys to Preventing Dental Emergencies
You may not always be able to prevent dental emergencies, but there are some ways you can dramatically decrease your risk of experiencing emergency dental damage. Some easy ways to avoid dental emergencies include the following:
Brush and floss your teeth each day and visit our team twice a year for checkups.
Wear nightguards as directed to avoid damage from nighttime teeth grinding and clenching.
Wear a mouthguard to prevent tooth damage due to sports-related facial trauma.
Do not chew on ice, fingernails, pen caps, or other hard objects.
Do not use your teeth as tools to open packages, hold objects, or crack nuts.
Emergency Dentistry FAQs
Will I Need a Root Canal for My Toothache?
Again, this question is impossible to answer without first examining your mouth. However, the chances are high that you might need a root canal if your emergency involves a serious toothache or extreme dental sensitivity. A root canal will remove the infected or damaged nerve from your tooth, so you won’t feel pain there anymore. The procedure itself is not painful in the slightest. In fact, many patients say that it feels no more uncomfortable than getting a simple filling, and it actually relieves their pain. So, there is no need to worry if you do end up needing a root canal.
Can I Reattach a Lost Dental Crown Myself?
We would not recommend trying to reattach a crown by yourself. Instead, we suggest calling us as soon as you can. While a lost dental crown is not necessarily as severe an emergency as a knocked-out tooth or an extreme toothache, it is imperative that you get treatment within a few days, as your tooth underneath the crown is now more vulnerable to decay and injury. You can use dental cement or sugar-free chewing gum to reattach the crown, but keep in mind that this is only a temporary solution, and that you should see your emergency dentist in Sparks as soon as you can for a permanent reattachment.
