If you or a loved one experience any kind of dental trauma, whether it’s due to a sudden accident or a small problem that has slowly become something major, you can always turn to The Castleberry Center to get the immediate and professional help you need. Dr. Castleberry and our team have handled all kinds of dental emergencies over the years, and our goal is always the same: to see a patient as quickly as possible and get them out of pain.
Dental emergencies are certainly stressful, but you can have a little peace of mind knowing that you have an emergency dentist in Louetta who is ready to help. Should the unexpected ever happen to you or a loved one’s smile, be sure to give us a call right away.
Why Choose The Castleberry Center for Emergency Dental Care?
Same-Day Emergency Appointments Available
Advanced Dental Technology
Insurance Welcome & Flexible Financing Available
What to Do in a Dental Emergency
Contact our office. If you ever find yourself experiencing a dental emergency in Louetta, you should give us a call as soon as possible. We’ll pencil you in at your earliest convenience. Over the phone, we’ll provide first-aid instructions to help you manage your situation in the meantime.
Have an emergency exam. When you get to our office, Dr. Castleberry will conduct an oral examination to identify the cause of your emergency. Using our findings, we’ll create a custom treatment plan to get you out of pain.
Get the care you need. Our team might be able to temporarily address your emergency during your appointment. However, you may have to return to our office for additional treatment depending on the situation at hand. Some common services include fillings, dental crowns, root canal therapy, gum disease treatment, and tooth extractions.
The Most Common Dental Emergencies
Dental emergencies often fall into one of two categories: those attributed to an infection or those sustained from physical trauma of some kind. For example, maybe you have a serious toothache that became worse over time, or you suffered a sports injury that resulted in a broken or knocked-out tooth. Regardless of the type of emergency you’re facing, we ask that you call our office right away to make an appointment and get helpful advice from our team. In the meantime, here’s what you can do to improve your situation.
Naturally, emergency dental care comes with a price. It’s important to be aware of the costs involved before you agree to any sort of treatment. Sometimes only a minor filling will be required, but, in other situations, treatments such as root canal therapy may be necessary. At The Castleberry Center, the cost of emergency dentistry in Louetta will be explained to you ahead of time so you know what to expect when the time comes for payment.
Every Dental Emergency is Different
Believe it or not, visiting your emergency dentist in Louetta is, in most cases, relatively inexpensive. During your appointment, our team will evaluate the extent of your condition and determine which treatments are necessary to get your smile back on track. Since every case is unique, it’s impossible to provide an accurate cost estimate until you come in for an exam.
However, some common solutions for dental emergencies include root canal therapy, extractions, dental crowns, and TMJ treatment. We will explain our findings and the recommended treatment plan, plus provide a cost estimate in advance so there won’t be any surprises!
Taking Care of Your Smile Can Save You Money
Not every dental emergency is entirely avoidable. Although some happen because of accidental injuries, the majority are the result of unchecked infection or damage. Fortunately, you can keep your smile healthy and save thousands of dollars over the years by investing in routine dental checkups.
On top of that, you can avoid breaking the bank by visiting our team as soon as you notice something wrong with your oral health. Taking care of a problem right away will help you avoid needing more expensive and extensive treatment later on.
Does Dental Insurance Cover Dental Emergencies?
The good news is that most dental insurance plans offer some level of coverage for emergency situations. At least one yearly emergency exam is typically fully covered, while common services associated with hurting teeth, like root canal therapy, extractions, and dental crowns, are eligible for 50-80 percent of coverage. Of course, every policy is unique which is why you should confirm the details with your insurance provider before committing to anything. Our team is more than happy to help with this process if needed!
Other Options for Making Dental Emergencies Affordable
Don’t have dental insurance? No problem! We offer flexible financing through CareCredit, Lending Club, Greensky Financing, or United Medical Credit. These third-party financiers provide patients with low-to-no-interest payment plans. We’ll help with the application process – simply contact our team!
How to Prevent Dental Emergencies
Even if you’re diligent about brushing and flossing, a dental emergency can happen when you least expect it to. While it often seems like there’s nothing you can do to prevent these urgent situations, some problems are avoidable if you take the right precautions. To lower your risk of a dental emergency in Louetta, here are some tips to keep in mind:
Visit your dentist every six months for a checkup and cleaning
Practice good oral hygiene
Maintain a healthy diet
Wear a mouthguard to protect against oral injuries
Avoid poor dental habits (i.e., smoking, biting fingernails, using your teeth as tools)
Dental Emergency FAQs
When you’re suffering through a sudden dental emergency near Houston, the very last thing you want to deal with is more confusion. At The Castleberry Center, we want our patients to be as informed as possible. That’s why we have gathered some of the questions that we get asked the most often by patients with dental emergencies and answered them down below for your convenience.
What Is Considered a Dental Emergency?
Since oral pain and discomfort can be relatively common, it can be difficult to determine whether you need emergency treatment. If you can honestly answer yes to any of the following questions, you most likely have a dental emergency on your hands that requires urgent care:
Are you in severe pain?
Is your mouth bleeding?
Have you lost or damaged a tooth?
Do you have loose teeth (as an adult)?
Do you have signs of an infection, such as a fever or swelling?
Do I Need to Go to the ER for a Dental Emergency?
While the staff at your local emergency room are medical professionals, they usually don’t have the specialized training to treat specific dental emergencies near Louetta Road. This is why, in most cases, you should see your emergency dentist instead of going to the hospital. If, however, your dental emergency also threatens your life, such as swelling that impacts your ability to breathe, you should get to an emergency room right away.
What If My Toothache Goes Away on Its Own?
Unlike most general medical problems, dental issues typically worsen the longer you put off getting treatment. When you have a toothache that suddenly stops, it might seem like the problem has cleared up, but the truth is it has gotten a whole lot worse.
A severe toothache is often caused by an infection reaching the sensitive inner portion of the tooth, called the pulp, where the nerve is located. As the nerve succumbs to the infection, it gradually begins to die, resulting in declining feelings of pain. At this point, a root canal might be the only treatment that can save your tooth from needing to be extracted. If you have a toothache that suddenly goes away, it’s more important than ever that you contact us for treatment.
What Can I Take to Help Alleviate Dental Pain?
Ibuprofen is often considered the best medicine for treating oral pain. You could also take other over-the-counter pain medications like aspirin or acetaminophen. Keep in mind that if you take aspirin, do NOT place it directly on the aching tooth. Doing so could irritate your gum tissue and actually increase your dental pain!
Do I Need to Be an Existing Patient to Be Seen for a Dental Emergency?
Not at all! We know that it can be stressful to find a new dentist, especially during an emergency, which is why we’re more than willing to treat you no matter your situation. We make it easy by accepting all major PPO plans, as well as military plans. If you don’t have dental insurance, we also partner with third-party finance plans like CareCredit and Lending Club to pay for the care you need. No matter what kind of dental emergency you’re going through, don’t hesitate to give us a call!
Is My Toothache a Dental Emergency? Possibly! One of the main signs that you should schedule an emergency exam with Dr. Castleberry is if your pain has persisted for more than 24 hours. There’s a good chance that the source is a cavity or another untreated oral health issue.
How You Should Handle a Toothache First, don’t attempt to ignore it in hopes that it will go away on its own. Instead, call our Louetta emergency dentist to schedule an appointment and take proactive measures to protect your tooth in the meantime, like sticking to softer foods and rinsing with warm saltwater every so often.
How We Treat Toothaches When you arrive at our office, Dr. Castleberry will take X-rays, conduct an oral exam, and determine what treatment is necessary to restore the health and function of your tooth. Whether it’s a dental crown or root canal treatment, you won’t have to worry – he earned the nickname "Painless" because of his gentle, efficient, and pain-free care!
Is a Chipped Tooth a Dental Emergency? Sometimes, yes! For example, if you are in pain, then it warrants a call to our Louetta dental office. If you aren’t, then you don’t need to schedule a same-day appointment, but you should still come in for an exam within a day or two.
How You Should Handle a Chipped Tooth To remove lingering shards of your tooth from your mouth, rinse gently with clean, room-temperature water. After that, cover the sharp edge of your tooth with some sugar-free gum. This will serve two purposes: preventing sensitivity and avoiding soft tissue injuries.
How We Treat Chipped Teeth If the chip is minor, then dental bonding is a great option because it’s quick. In fact, it allows us to restore your tooth on the same day as your visit! However, veneers are also a great option, especially if the chip is more significant. Although it takes more than one appointment, the results can last you well over a decade.
Is a Cracked Tooth a Dental Emergency? Yes, a cracked tooth is a dental emergency and warrants an immediate call to our Louetta dental team. The longer you wait, the more likely it is that the tooth will become infected or crack even further.
How You Should Handle a Cracked Tooth Periodically, rinse your mouth with clean, lukewarm water. This will help keep the area clean, especially if the size of the crack is so significant that you can’t brush and floss as usual. It also goes without saying that you shouldn’t eat anything like raw nuts, peanut brittle, or hard pretzels, especially on that side of your mouth.
How We Treat Cracked Teeth Priority number one is saving your tooth, which is why we will first see if we can restore its function with a dental crown. If we can’t, then we will need to explore the other options available, like gently removing the tooth and putting a dental implant or bridge in its place.
