Emergency Dentistry in Wilkes-Barre, PA

Dental emergencies come on suddenly and without warning, causing inconvenience, pain, and worry. Dr. Coolican is your trusted emergency dentist, providing fast relief to residents of Wilkes-Barre, PA. At Mint Mini Dental Implants, we provide emergency dentistry when you need it most. In these instances, immediate solutions are needed to alleviate pain and prevent further damage to your teeth and surrounding structures. If you or someone you love is experiencing a dental emergency, don’t wait. Call us at the onset of symptoms. If you aren’t sure if you need urgent dental care, you can trust us to provide expert guidance.

Same-Day Emergency Dentistry

At Mint Mini Dental Implants, we account for possible dental emergencies by reserving times in our schedule should emergencies arise. With a same-day emergency appointment, we’ll prioritize you and your needs, providing timely care so you don’t have to suffer while waiting for a regular appointment.

When Emergency Dentistry Is Needed

Any dental problem that requires immediate attention qualifies as a dental emergency. With sudden pain or dental trauma, immediate attention is needed to relieve pain, restore the function of your mouth, and prevent complications. Some common dental emergencies include:

Severe toothache: sudden onset of severe tooth pain constitutes a dental emergency, especially if the pain inhibits your normal routines.
Pain that medication doesn’t resolve: you may need a different medication, such as an antibiotic, to resolve pain from an infection. We’d like to see you to diagnose and treat the cause of your unmanageable pain.
Chipped or cracked tooth: Due to an injury, strain, or even grinding, your tooth may become badly chipped or broken. If you have cavities, you are at higher risk of fracturing your teeth. Large cracks or chips need timely care.
A knocked out or partially dislodged tooth: impact trauma, often from sports injuries, can lead to a partially dislodged or knocked out tooth. According to the American Association of Endodontists, more than five million teeth are knocked out yearly in children and adults. If your tooth is knocked out or partially dislodged, you should wrap lost teeth or fragments in wet gauze or a towel and bring them with you. Keeping the tooth moist increases the chance that we can save it. We’ll need to see you immediately to restore and reinsert the tooth.
Damage to prosthetics or replacement teeth: if your replacement teeth or prosthetics are loose, have fallen out, or are broken, we’ll need to fix your appliance promptly.
Bleeding that won’t stop: uncontrollable bleeding, such as gum bleeding, is a common reason to visit your emergency dentist.
Dental abscess: an abscess, or pocket of pus, is caused by a bacterial infection and can trigger sudden pain that gradually worsens. Dental abscesses can form around a tooth or in the gums. You may feel shooting or throbbing pain that may radiate, sensitivity to hot or cold temperatures, or pain that worsens when you lie down. You may also see a red, swollen bump in your mouth. Because abscesses don’t heal independently, you’ll need to see Dr. Coolican immediately. If left untreated, the infection can spread and lead to serious complications.
Severe soft tissue injury: injury to your lips, tongue, cheeks, or gums requires immediate attention.

What Doesn’t Qualify as a Dental Emergency?

If you experience unexplainable pain, you should always call our office. However, some cases may not require emergency dental care. We’ll help you determine if you need to come in immediately or if you can schedule a later appointment. Some non-urgent dental problems include:

Dull or mild toothache or sensitivity
A small chip or crack in the tooth
Food stuck between your teeth
Broken braces
Minor injury to soft tissues, such as a small cut

These issues are still concerning and can cause further complications if left untreated, but they don’t require emergency care. Still, you should schedule an appointment with us as soon as possible.

If you have questions about your oral health and want to learn more about the treatments and procedures we offer at Mint Mini Dental Implants, schedule your free consultation today.

Emergency Dentistry Procedures

We provide a wide range of emergency dentistry and oral surgery procedures at Mint Mini Dental Implants. Many of these procedures can be performed the same day you experience sudden pain or trauma.

Crowns or Dental Bonding

Chips or cracks in your teeth won’t heal on their own and only worsen over time. We can treat chipped or broken teeth with dental bonding or crowns. For smaller chips and cracks, dental bonding can help. We’ll fill the fracture with a resin material to conceal and close the fracture. For more severe damage, we’ll place a crown, or cap, over your affected tooth to protect it and prevent further damage.

Root Canal Therapy

A cracked or abscessed tooth sometimes requires root canal therapy to prevent tooth loss. Dr. Coolican will remove the inflamed or infected pulp, which is the soft tissue inside your tooth. He’ll clean and disinfect the pulp chamber before filling the space with a flexible material called gutta-percha. Finally, Dr. Coolican will seal the tooth with a filling to prevent bacteria from causing further damage.

Tooth Extraction

While our goal is to save your tooth whenever possible, severe damage may call for an extraction. For example, a tooth with a severe crack that extends below the gumline can’t be saved, so we’ll need to remove the tooth. Extraction may also be necessary due to trauma, disease, or decay. At times, wisdom teeth can cause intense pain and need to be urgently extracted.

Do I Need to Go to the Emergency Room?

If our office isn’t open and you are experiencing severe and unmanageable pain, you should go to the nearest emergency room. While emergency departments and urgent care centers do not staff dentists, ER staff can treat secondary symptoms, alleviating your pain with medications. Because they do not perform restorations or other specialized dental treatments, it’s important that you see Dr. Coolican as soon as possible following an emergency room visit.

Paying for Dental Emergencies

Timely care is crucial in dental emergencies since outcomes are better with prompt treatment. However, financial limitations can sometimes make us hesitate. At Mint Mini Dental Implants, we help you handle the unexpected through our partnerships with three dental financing companies: Ally, Lending Club, and Care Credit. While the cost of treatment depends on the complexity of the problem and the procedures needed, these flexible financing options can help you make manageable monthly payments so you can promptly address your dental emergency.

Relieve Your Pain at Mint Mini Dental Implants

When something doesn’t feel right with your teeth, we need to know. Prompt dental treatment decreases the chances that you’ll need extensive care later. At Mint Mini Dental Implants, we provide convenient in-house emergency dentistry to quickly get you back on your feet.

Though you may be unsure whether treatment needs to be done immediately or if you should schedule a later appointment, our team of compassionate and expert professionals can make that decision for you. Don’t wait. Call Dr. Coolican at Mint Mini Dental Implants today.