Dabbling in Dentistry

Most people will experience dental pain or a dental complication at some point in their lives. Dental pain is an incredibly common complaint by people of all ages, especially those who lack dental insurance and suitable hygiene habits. Sometimes, though, poor dentition or injury is simply a result of bad luck. Patients often present to the ED hoping to find a dentist and an answer to their problems.   Your first thought? “I am not a dentist. What am I going to do?” You’re right to an extent. We are not dentists, and often feel we have little to offer patients for acute issues that require equipment we don’t have and don’t know how to use. We certainly cannot assist with long-term tooth maintenance and treatment of chronic pain. As many of us know, pulling teeth in the ED is not something we do on demand and should not be expected to do.     Dental fracture, Ellis Type II, tooth #18, left, and common periodontal application kit and set up, right.   But we can do some procedures in the ED without a dentist being present or even consulted, and we can link the patient with some dental resources. There are many dental schools that accept patients for a marginal fee to improve their training skills. When it comes to educating your patients, suggest brushing twice a day, changing their toothbrush every six months, and having a dental cleaning at that time, too. In fact, we suggest you give out this information to all of your patients in the general discharge paperwork...
Source: The Procedural Pause - Category: Emergency Medicine Tags: Blog Posts Source Type: blogs