Dental emergencies can create a great deal of stress. We’d like to help you through your unexpected dental situation with prompt treatment and friendly care. Whether you are an existing patient of Kravitz Dental or you are just visiting our area, we will make every effort to provide same-day care to resolve discomfort and restore your tooth.
Contact our office immediately for assistance with your dental emergency.
What is Considered a Dental Emergency?
There are a number of circumstances that may require prompt dental care. We believe that any dental problem that is causing unrelenting discomfort should be evaluated right away. Specific injuries that may require a same-day visit include:
Cracked or Broken Tooth
Teeth may break or crack when a hard object is bitten or chewed. Sometimes, this injury is painless. However, an extensive fracture may reach the tooth root. If this occurs, pain may become severe at some point. For this reason, it is critical to obtain proper restorative care as soon as possible to repair the broken tooth.
How a broken tooth is repaired depends on the degree of damage that has occurred. If the root is still intact and in healthy condition, the broken tooth may be restored with a dental crown. If the root has been affected, root canal therapy may be necessary.
Lost Filling or Crown
A filling or crown may come loose or pop off while you are eating. Without the proper restoration in place, the affected tooth may develop extreme sensitivity or pain. If you lose a crown or filling, contact our office right away. In the case of a dental crown, keep the restoration in a manner that you can safely transport it to our office. If possible, we may reinsert it.
If you lose a crown or filling during a time when our office is closed, you may take over-the-counter pain medication to improve comfort. Clean the tooth and the crown as well as you can, and temporarily reattach the crown with dental cement purchased at your local pharmacy. ONLY dental adhesive should be used to affix a loose crown temporarily. During your visit, we will make sure your tooth and crown are clean before reapplying the crown with professional-grade dental cement.
Avulsed Tooth
If a tooth gets knocked out, we may be able to reinsert it if you can be seen within an hour of this injury.
- Handle the tooth only by the crown.
- Rinse the tooth with lukewarm water.
- If possible, place the tooth back into the socket. Otherwise, the tooth may be held between the cheek and gums.
- If necessary, transport the tooth to our office in a cup. The tooth should sit in saliva or milk. As a last resort, it may sit in water to prevent dehydration.
We attempt to replace avulsed teeth into the natural socket whenever possible. If the injury has caused too much damage, root canal therapy may be needed.
These are a few examples of dental emergencies that require timely care. However, any situation in which dental pain is persistent is important to address as quickly as possible.
Insurance
We complement our high standards of patient-centered care with convenient financial options and assistance with dental insurance questions and claims. Insurance matters can be confusing. Please contact our billing office with specific questions regarding your dental benefits so we can help you maximize coverage. As a courtesy, we can process insurance claims on your behalf. A 45-day window is provided for your insurance company to render payment. After this timeframe, the full balance of dental services performed will become your responsibility. If you have any questions regarding a bill or your insurance benefits, please do not hesitate to contact our Pembroke Pines or Miami office. Please bring your insurance card with you to your initial appointment.
Insurances accepted by our office include:
- AMERITAS (PPO)
- BCBS (PPO)
- CIGNA DENTAL (HMO/PPO)
- COMPBENEFITS (HMO/PPO)
- DELTA DENTAL (HMO/PPO)
- FLORIDA COMBINED LIFE (HMO/PPO)
- GUARDIAN (PPO)
- HUMANA (HMO/PPO)
- LINCOLN FINANCIAL (PPO)
- METLIFE (PPO)
- SAFEGUARD (HMO)
- SOLSTICE (HMO/PPO)
- UNITED CONCORDIA (PPO)
- UNITED HEALTHCARE (HMO/PPO)
