How to Manage Dental Problems While Staying at Home During the COVID-19 Pandemic Part 2

If over time your tooth has become loose, it is probably due to an underlying gum issue and bone loss. It is incredibly important that you do everything you can to keep the gum and bone as happy and healthy as possible to avoid losing more bone and potentially even the tooth. More adults lose their teeth due to gum issues than to decay.

Pay attention to maintaining good oral hygiene and avoiding chewing hard food on the loose teeth. Use a soft-bristled toothbrush, brushing for at least two minutes after meals and floss daily. If the pain is not obvious, please visit us for examination and treatment after the pandemic is over.

If you feel that the swelling is related to a particular tooth, that your jaw or face is possibly swelling, you will need to seek help as soon as possible, as this is a sign of more significant infection.

Please contact us via Facebook Messenger or see your doctor as soon as possible. If the swelling is causing breathing difficulties, please call emergency services.

If you are experiencing generalised gum swelling, it may be an indication of gum disease. Usually, people stop or reduce their brushing because of gum swelling or because their gums bleed a little when they brush. We actually need to do the opposite and brush more.

Pay attention to maintaining good oral hygiene and avoid chewing on the affected side. You can appropriately increase the number of times a day you brush, using a soft-bristled toothbrush for at least two minutes each time. It is also recommended to use dental floss, interdental brushes or water floss after every meal. If necessary, you can use warm salty water to gargle.

After the pandemic, please visit us for a full examination and profession scale and clean treatment. This will allow us to assess if there has been any resulting bone loss and to remove the hard calculus that brushing simply can’t remove.

If you have acute significant swelling due to infection, you can take painkillers and antibiotics. (We may be able to write you a prescription for antibiotics, or you can get one from your doctor).

In case of emergency with swelling and difficulty in breathing, please ring 000.

Please remember this is general information and is to be used only as a guide, for personal advice, please contact us via email or Facebook Messenger.

The most common recurrent ulcer in the mouth is the aphthous ulcer. Usually, this type of ulcer just needs a little time to heal itself, typically about seven to ten days. It may be caused by an accidental traumatic bite or a burn from hot food. You can get some topical medication such as a chlorhexidine mouth rinse (Savacol) or gel such as Curasept, to apply on the affected area. Meanwhile, try to pay attention to good oral hygiene and avoid eating spicy and irritating food. If there is a long-term non-healing oral ulcer, a referral to oral pathologist is recommended for further investigation.

More often than not, wisdom teeth start to hurt when food gets packed in the area, causing the surrounding gum to be irritated. Of course, because they are so far back, wisdom teeth are also the most difficult to keep clean.

Make sure you pay attention to maintaining good oral hygiene and avoid chewing on the affected side. Try to brush the affected area after every meal to avoid food packing.

Generally, a smaller head on your toothbrush will make it easier to clean your wisdom teeth, try using a small child’s toothbrush, or you can carefully cut off some of the bristles on a standard toothbrush. As always, we recommend using a soft toothbrush.

We also recommend using dental floss, interdental brushes or water floss after every meal to help keep the area really clean. If necessary, you can use warm salty water to gargle. Please visit us for full examination and treatment after the pandemic is over.

If you have acute significant swelling due to infection, you can take painkillers and antibiotics. (We may be able to write you a prescription for antibiotics, or you can get one from your doctor). In case of emergency with swelling and difficulty in breathing, please ring 000.

You can try to reduce the time and frequency of wearing dentures to give you soft tissues a bit of a break. Ideally, dentures should be left out at night, but we understand that some people aren’t comfortable doing this.

Try to chew with softer foods so you are not putting too much biting pressure on the sore gum. Sometimes lose dentures can cause some gum soreness so you could try to apply an adhesive gel, such as Polident cream, for better retention.

If the denture is causing ulcers due to long term rubbing, you can get some topical medication such as chlorhexidine Savacol mouth rinse, or gel such as Curasept, to apply on the affected area. Meanwhile, try to pay attention to good oral hygiene and avoid eating spicy and irritating food.

After the pandemic is over, please visit us for an examination of the cause.

We will be making further blogs with more information on how to help you through these difficult days. If you would like personal help or guidance on how to manage, please feel free to contact us.

To keep informed on when we will be opening by following our Facebook page.

Please contact us via email (contact@passionfamilydental.com.au) or Facebook Messenger for further help and advice.

Remember that we are all in this together! Stay Safe!