As we are all very well aware, the situation surrounding the spread of COVID-19 is continuously changing. It is still the guidance of both the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the American Dental Association (ADA) that dental offices only accept emergency and urgent care patients. At Country Club Dental Flagstaff, our commitment is to keep our patients and community safe and informed as to how we are responding to the pandemic. We are grateful to all of our patients who have graciously rescheduled their general appointments and elective procedures into the future. But what should you do if you are experiencing a dental emergency?
What qualifies as a dental emergency?
As a part of their emergency guidance, the ADA has included urgent care cases in its definition of non-elective, emergency cases. Below are the specific conditions that qualify.
Dental Emergencies
As defined by the ADA, dental emergencies are “potentially life-threatening and require immediate treatment to stop ongoing tissue bleeding [or to] alleviate severe pain or infection.” Dental emergencies include:
- Uncontrolled bleeding
- Cellulitis or a diffuse soft-tissue bacterial infection with intraoral or extraoral swelling that potentially compromises the patient’s airway
- Trauma involving facial bones that potentially compromises the patient’s airway.
Urgent Care
According to the ADA, urgent care “focuses on the management of conditions that require immediate attention to relieve severe pain and/or risk of infection and to alleviate the burden on hospital emergency departments.” Urgent care conditions include:
- Severe dental pain from pulpal inflammation
- Pericoronitis or third-molar pain
- Surgical postoperative osteitis or dry socket dressing changes
- Abscess or localized bacterial infection resulting in localized pain and swelling
- Tooth fracture resulting in pain or causing soft tissue trauma
- Dental trauma where the tooth is dislocated in the socket or entirely displaced
- Dental treatment cementation if the temporary restoration is lost, broken or causing gingival irritation
- Dental treatment required prior to critical medical procedures
- Extensive caries or defective restorations that are causing pain
- Suture removal
- Denture adjustments on radiation/oncology patient
- Denture adjustments or repairs when function is impeded
- Replacing temporary filling on endo access openings in patients experiencing pain
- Snipping or adjustments of an orthodontic wire or appliances piercing or ulcerating the oral mucosa
What questions will you be asked when you make an appointment?
Due to the nature of the current pandemic, our dental office has begun to ask specific questions that will help us gauge the health of our patients. These questions are not meant to be intrusive but are asked as a safety precaution for our team, patients and community.
The ADA has recommended that dental offices update a patient’s medical history at each visit. Screening questions may be asked when confirming appointments or when the patient comes in for treatment.
At Country Club Dental, questions we are asking to screen for coronavirus include asking if the patient:
- Has traveled internationally in the last 14 days
- Has been in close contact with another person who has been diagnosed with or under investigation for COVID-19
- Has a cough, fever or shortness of breath
Financing for Dental Emergencies in Flagstaff
We understand that many households are struggling to make ends meet during the COVID-19 pandemic. At Country Club Dental Flagstaff, we are committed to making emergency dental appointments as affordable as possible, and CareCredit is one way to do that. CareCredit is a line of credit that provides flexibility and convenience when paying for a wide range of dental, healthcare and personal care expenses. Learn more here and schedule your emergency dental appointment in Flagstaff today.
Images used under creative commons license – commercial use. Image by StockSnap from Pixabay (4/7/2020)
