Do I Need to See an Emergency Dentist for an Extraction?

I’m a little freaked out and worried that I need to find an emergency dentist to pull my tooth. I was visiting my family in Mexico a little over a month ago when I developed a very sore tooth. My mother swore by her dental office and told me the guy had taken good care of her, so I trusted that everything would be ok. From the minute I walked into the clinic, I got a sinking feeling in my stomach. It was this tiny little hole-in-the-wall place. It was dingy and outdated. I didn’t see anyone in the office but me. Not even an assistant or secretary. The guy didn’t even take an x-ray of the tooth, but he told me I had a cavity and that the tooth was broke. I agreed to let him fix it and it seemed ok at first, but over the next few days, the soreness didn’t go away. Now it feels worse. I’m afraid that he misdiagnosed me and that it’s going to cost me my tooth. Do I need to see an emergency dentist to have it pulled or is there a chance it’s going to get better?

Thanks,

Camila

Dear Camila,

So sorry to hear this happened to you. It does sound like there’s something going on with that tooth, but you may be getting a bit ahead of yourself by thinking it’s time for an extraction. You didn’t really describe the type of pain you’re having or what’s happening, so it could be any number of things. Maybe he didn’t adjust the filling enough, in which case, a local office could smooth it out for you. It’s also possible he didn’t do the filling right, that the tooth has an injured root, or that it really needed a crown or root canal. It’s a shame he didn’t take an x-ray before he made his diagnosis. That’s a very basic standard of care one would expect in the United States, but when you have dental work done across the border, it’s tough to say what you’ll wind up with.

Bottom Line: See an Emergency Dentist

If you’re in pain, you should get urgent care. This may be something minor that can be fixed easily or it might need more treatment, but you shouldn’t try to wait the pain out and hope it goes away. Oftentimes, it just gets worse, the tooth will develop an infection, or it might break. Any of those things would increase the amount of treatment needed to correct it, and continue your suffering, so it’s a good idea to get in as soon as you can. Best of luck to you.

This blog is sponsored by Elgin Emergency Dentist, Dr. Steve Sirin.