Pediatric Emergency Dentist Hinsdale and Downers Grove
Your Place for Fast, Kid-Friendly Emergency Care
To say kids have a lot of energy is a major understatement. Often, they take a spill and bump into each other without consequence, but sometimes accidents and injuries happen. If they suddenly sustain an injury to their teeth, it can be tough knowing what to do. Should you take them to the hospital? Call 911?
Luckily, we have you covered right here at Brush Pediatric Dentistry. Our pediatric emergency dentists in Hinsdale and Downers Grove have all received special training to handle children’s dental emergencies. From the moment you call us, we’ll work hard to calm your child down and help them get the urgent treatment that they need.
If your child loses consciousness or you feel they have another serious injury, you should immediately call 911 and proceed to the nearest emergency room right away.
Why Choose Brush Pediatric Dentistry for Your Child’s Emergency Dentistry?
- Same-Day & Weekend Emergency Appointments
- Nitrous Oxide & General Anesthesia Available
- Experience with Patients with Special Needs
How We Treat Dental Emergencies
- Give Us a Call: When you call our office, we’ll do everything we can to fit your child into our schedule the same day to make sure they don’t have to wait in pain. While on the phone, our highly skilled team will walk you through first aid steps.
- Come in for an Exam: Once you arrive, you and your child will be warmly welcomed by our team and guided back to our operatory as soon as possible. One of our experienced pediatric emergency dentists in Hinsdale will examine your child’s teeth and gums and diagnose the issue at hand. Following making the diagnosis, they will create a treatment plan to address any underlying concerns.
- Get Treated: Before you leave, our front desk staff will schedule a follow-up appointment or any needed treatments to make sure your child’s oral health gets back on the right track and any lingering discomfort is erased.
The Most Common Dental Emergencies
In the midst of helping your child calm down, easing their pain, and figuring out necessary next steps, it can be hard to think clearly and act fast. To help you determine whether your child needs urgent dental attention, we’ve included some of the most common emergency dental situations that we treat below. In any case, we always recommend giving us a call if you’re concerned!
Understanding the Cost of Pediatric Dental Emergencies
Dental emergencies can certainly be scary, but with Brush Pediatric Dentistry, you have a plan of action. We’ll be there for you and your child during one of their toughest moments, even if it happens on a weekend, and you can trust that we’ll have them smiling afterward. If you have any questions or want to schedule an appointment, contact our office today.
Every Dental Emergency is Different
The cost of emergency dental treatment can vary quite a bit depending on the situation. Once we’ve examined your child’s mouth and have taken any necessary X-rays, we’ll develop a custom-tailored treatment plan to get them out of pain quickly, all while maintaining their oral health in the long-term.
The cost of your overall visit will be almost entirely determined by our recommended treatment method. For example, a sensitive tooth caused by a cavity can be treated with a basic restorative service like a filling, which is covered at a greater percentage by dental insurance and is less costly than more extensive procedures like a tooth extraction.
Does Dental Insurance Cover the Cost of Dental Emergencies?
We are proud to be a dental insurance-friendly practice and accept all PPO plans. Our team can help you maximize your benefits for your child’s treatment by filing claims on your behalf and minimizing your out-of-pocket expenses to the best of our ability. In many cases, dental insurance plans will cover at least a portion of the cost of pediatric dental emergencies in Hinsdale, including the treatment. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask our helpful team.
Options for Making Pediatric Dental Emergency Visits More Affordable
In addition to helping you get the most out of your dental insurance coverage, our team also offers flexible third-party financing. This allows you to split up the cost of your child’s treatment and visit into smaller monthly payments, helping you more easily incorporate it into your monthly budget.
Investing in Preventive Care Can Help You Save
Although accidents can happen no matter how hard you try to prevent them, investing in preventive dental services for your child, like routine checkups and cleanings, can help minimize their risk of experiencing a toothache, severe dental sensitivity, and more. At these visits, our board-certified pediatric dentists can also assess your child’s risk of damaging a tooth, like if they play sports, and recommend appropriate preventive measures.
Keys to Preventing Pediatric Dental Emergencies
As much as you would love to keep your child safe from any type of dental emergency in Hinsdale, it’s just not always possible! However, there are a few preventive steps you can take to minimize their risk of experiencing oral pain or a dental injury. If you’re concerned about your child’s risk of damaging a tooth, like if they participate in sports or grind their teeth, don’t hesitate to bring it up to our team of board-certified pediatric dentists at their next checkup and cleaning.
Schedule Regular Pediatric Dental Visits
The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry recommends that children first visit their dentist by the time they turn 12 months old. After this, routine six-month visits should be scheduled to help spot and treat any oral health concerns that may arise. These appointments allow our team to take care of small issues, like cavities, before they have a chance to progress into dental emergencies.
Help Your Child Maintain Good At-Home Oral Hygiene
A key to preventing pediatric dental emergencies in Hinsdale and Downers Grove is to teach your child good at-home oral hygiene habits. This includes effective brushing and flossing using kid-friendly products that are small enough to comfortably fit in their mouths.
For children, just like adults, it’s crucial to brush twice a day for two minutes using a soft-bristled toothbrush and fluoride toothpaste. Children should use a rice grain-sized smear of fluoridated toothpaste if they’re between two and three years old and a pea-sized amount between three and six years old. It’s also important to teach your child good flossing habits, helping them floss between each of their teeth at least once a day.
Stock Your Kitchen with Tooth-Friendly Snacks
Although potato chips and fruit snacks may be a delicious go-to snack for your child after school, these aren’t always the best option for their pearly whites. This is because the cavity-causing bacteria within the mouth love to feed off of carbohydrates like sugars. Every now and then, try to substitute fresh fruits and vegetables for their go-to favorites that may be packed with carbohydrates to help prevent cavities.
Invest in a Custom Mouthguard for Your Athlete
If your child participates in a sports team at school, consider investing in a customized mouthguard for them. Our pediatric dentists in Hinsdale also offer custom nightguards for children who grind and clench their teeth! These will help protect their teeth from becoming worn-down and more susceptible to dental emergencies like tooth infections.
Teach Your Child Healthy Dental Habits
The best way to help your child form good dental habits is to model them yourself! Instead of opening packages with your teeth or chewing on the tip of a pencil, show your child it’s best to substitute squeezing a stress ball or occupying your hands. Doing this will help avoid accidental damage that could lead to an unexpected visit to the emergency dentist, like a chipped or cracked tooth.
Children’s Dental Emergency FAQs
What should I do if my child has a painful tooth?
Toothaches can be the result of a number of underlying issues, like a cracked or damaged tooth or an infected tooth. In either case, the first step you should take is to contact our team at Brush Pediatric Dentistry. We’ll schedule a same-day appointment to help your little one get out of pain as quickly as possible. Depending on the cause of your child’s tooth pain in Hinsdale, we may recommend a dental crown, filling, or nerve treatment to restore their oral health and comfort.
How do I know whether to visit the ER or an emergency pediatric dentist?
We recommend contacting an emergency pediatric dentist as soon as possible if your child is experiencing oral pain. This is because emergency rooms typically don’t have these specialists on-staff, allowing them to only provide temporary pain relief to your child instead of addressing the underlying concern causing their discomfort.
However, we do urge visiting the emergency room if your child is having difficulty breathing or swallowing, has a fractured or broken jaw, or a serious laceration or other life-threatening symptom. In all other cases, we encourage you to give our office a call so we can schedule a same-day or weekend appointment for your child to be seen.
Does my child need to visit an emergency dentist for a chipped tooth?
If the damage to your child’s tooth or teeth is minor, a same-day emergency appointment may not be necessary. However, if it’s more substantial or causing them discomfort, we recommend calling our office so we can see your child as soon as possible. In any case, it’s important for your little one to receive an examination and treatment to prevent the development of worsening oral health problems.
Is a knocked-out baby tooth a dental emergency?
Even though baby teeth are supposed to fall out on their own, it’s still a good idea to have your child seen if their baby tooth has fallen out as a result of trauma. Premature primary tooth loss can increase your child’s risk of developing orthodontic problems in the future, so we may recommend a space maintainer or other solution to keep this from occurring.
My child’s dental crown fell off. What should I do?
If your child’s crown fell off of their tooth, the first step you should take is give our office a call so we can schedule an appointment for your little one! Try to find the crown, rinse it off, and bring it to their appointment. In some cases, we may be able to reattach the crown, while in others, a new restoration may need to be crafted.