During recent COVID-19 pandemic that has been tremendously affecting health and well-being worldwide, dental practices have been highly restricted to suspend all routine treatments in a bid to reduce the spread of COVID-19 disease. However, emergency dental treatments are allowed under updated disease prevention guidelines. These dental procedures must be strictly conducted with airborne precautions well supported by personal protective equipment and negative pressure rooms if necessary. To minimize the viral transmission, infection prevention and pandemic control policies as well as social distancing must be complied.
For dental emergencies, dentists providing emergency care must perform a thorough pre-treatment risk assessment that includes risk to the patients and risk to the oral health care providers. For all routine dental care including esthetic dentistry, procedures can be postponed until the pandemic situation is well controlled.
Check it out here whether emergency dental care is indicated:
Dental emergencies that immediate treatments are required
- Massive oral bleeding
- Oral infections inside or around the oral cavity that cause serious complications such as airway inflammation or obstruction
- Traumatic dental injuries that significantly impair respiratory functions
Dental problems that also need immediate dental care
- Dental clearance exam before other treatments e.g. heart surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy in cancer patients
- Tooth sensitivity, severe toothache and pain presenting with abscess due to advanced stage of tooth decay (dental caries)
- Wisdom tooth pain or post-extraction pain
- Severe pain or toothache caused by the injuries to the hard dental tissues leading to chipped or broken tooth
- Accidental tooth loss or tooth dislocation
- Lost or broken dentures that cause gum and tissue injuries
- Lost or broken filling or crown during root canal treatment
- Orthodontic emergencies that injure oral tissues e.g. loose or fractured removable appliance and loose or fractured fixed appliance such as wire, band and brackets as well as ligature
Dental problems that treatments can be postponed
- Dental check-ups and routine dental procedures such as dental scaling and polishing;
- Tooth decay without symptoms such as toothache or tooth sensitivity;
- Non-emergency orthodontics and
- Esthetic dentistry.
To ensure the possible highest level of oral hygiene and safety amid COVID-19 pandemic, our Dental Center at Bangkok Hospital has fully implemented preventive strategies and pandemic control in order to reduce chances of viral transmission. Emergency dental services provided by our highly experienced dentists in all subspecialties are available around-the-clock under updated guidelines and strict rules. Supported by advanced technology, laboratory, personal protective equipment and isolation areas, patients can be assured that all emergency procedures are strictly conducted with transmission-based precautions as well as world-class dental standard of care.
