Dental First Aid
Pain
Avoid stimuli that precipitate or worsen the pain such as hot and cold food or drinks or cold air.
Holding cooled water or crushed ice around the tooth can help some types of dental pain.
Severe pain from the mouth or teeth sometimes feels worse when lying flat therefore try lying propped up as this might ease the pain.
Use painkillers that have successfully provided pain relief for you in the past without adverse effects. Always take in accordance with the instructions on the packet. Never take medication prescribed for other people.
For children use infant ibuprofen or infant paracetamol as directed on the bottle.
Bleeding
Blood stained saliva is normal after dental extraction.
Make a small pad with a clean cotton handkerchief or kitchen towel and dampen it slightly with water.
Rinse the mouth once only with warm ( not hot ) water to get rid of the blood.
Place the damp pad over the socket area and bite firmly. If there are no opposing teeth hold the pad firmly on the socket. Maintain this while sitting upright quietly for 20 minutes and then ckeck. Repeat once if necessary.
After the bleeding has stopped, remain rested and as upright as possible.
Do not drink alcohol.
Do not disturb the blood clot in the socket.
Trauma
For patients who suffer severe trauma to a tooth i.e broken with resulting severe pain or a tooth knocked out of the mouth entirely but still intact (avulsed ) please contact the practice immediately and follow instructions given.
For an avulsed adult tooth avoid touching the root, hold only by the crown of the tooth and store in fresh or long life milk if it has not been possible to re-plant the tooth immediately.
For a baby tooth, do not re-plant the tooth but contact the practice as an assessment will be necessary to ascertain if damage has been done to the underlying adult tooth.
All dental emergencies should be reported to the practice first thing in the morning. If a severe emergency arises out with normal surgery hours the practice should be phoned and instruction will be given to you via our answering service.
Crowns
Broken or lost crowns are not an emergency.
A good temporary measure to refix a crown is to use a denture fixative material or most chemists stock a repair kit which should be used as directed.
If the practice cannot see you that day, never sleep with a crown that is not securely in place.
Dentures
All NHS denture repairs are free of charge but will take 48 hours to be returned to the practice by the laboratory.
If you have a broken denture Ayr Dental Laboratory in Cambuslea Road in Ayr will repair the denture for you in 1 hour. Please note there is a charge for this service.