Going to the Dentist During the Coronavirus Outbreak

Coronavirus recommendations from the Dentist

In the midst of Coronavirus spreading, we at Bellevue Dentists in Bellevue, WA have been monitoring this situation very closely for the past three months. As health care providers during a pandemic, we will continue with the relief of pain and management of infection with our patients in order to keep them out of hospitals and emergency departments.

As the spread of COVID-19 continues, we have received several questions from our patients:

Should I go to the dentist if I’m having pain?

Remember, social distancing is key to controlling the spread of Coronavirus. Also, the key to your optimal health is to make sure you don’t end up with dental infections. As someone who has first-hand experience of seeing patients suffer due to letting infections play out, we suggest all our patients visit the dentist if they experience pain, swelling, or discomfort. Presently, dentists across the US have been recommended to see only those patients with dental emergencies and infection.

Some examples of dental emergencies are:

• Wisdom tooth pain/ infection (your mouth might not open fully or you may experience a bad taste in your mouth)
• Root Canal Treatment (RCT) to treat pain
• Severe, throbbing pain in your jaw
• Infection of the face with intra-oral or extra-oral swelling
• Trauma to the teeth or jaw
  
• Denture adjustment on radiation/oncology patients
• Denture adjustments or repairs when you can’t chew
• Severe dental pain from pulpal inflammation.
• Pericoronitis or third-molar pain. (gum inflammation around wisdom teeth
• Dry Socket/ post-extraction pain and inflammation
• Abscess or localized bacterial infection resulting in localized pain and swelling.
• Tooth fracture resulting in pain or causing soft tissue trauma.
• Dental trauma with loose teeth/ tooth loss.
• Dental restoration/ crown cementation if the temporary crown is lost, broken or causing gingival irritation.
• Extensive caries or defective restorations causing pain
• Suture removal
• Denture adjustments on radiation/oncology patients
• Denture adjustments or repairs when function impeded
• Replacing temporary filling on RCT access openings in patients experiencing pain
• Snipping or adjustments of an orthodontic wire.
• Appliances piercing or ulcerating oral mucosa.

IF YOU HAVE A DENTAL EMERGENCY/ UNABLE TO GO TO THE DENTIST, WE ARE SCHEDULING PHONE CALLS/ VIDEO CONFERENCING WITH OUR DENTISTS