Month: March 2017

How to Handle Different Types of Dental Emergencies

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dental emergency A dental emergency can happen any time, any where and can be anything from a chipped tooth, a toothache, a lost filling, or a tooth that’s totally knocked out. While nobody ever wants to experience a dental emergency, the truth is, they happen. When they do, you should be aware of some ways to handle some of the most common dental emergencies. That’s where our dental office in Holland comes in.

There’s Not a One-Size-Fits-All Solution to All Dental Emergencies

Not every dental emergency is handled the same way, but there is one thing that stays true to every type of dental problem — see your dentist in Holland as soon as you can. In the meantime, there are a variety of things you can do to help. Let’s examine several common dental emergencies and tips to try in case they happen to you.  

Dental Emergency: Broken/Chipped Tooth

How to Help It: Rinse your mouth and any tooth pieces with warm water to clean them. Save any pieces you happen to find. If you’re bleeding, apply pressure to the area with a piece of gauze until the bleeding stops. Remember, a mouth can bleed a lot, so be patient. To reduce swelling and minimize pain, apply a cold compress to the outside of the mouth.

Dental Emergency: Lost Filling

How to Help It: This emergency will require a dental visit rather quickly to fill in the hole that’s now in your tooth. If you can’t get to the dentist right away, you can buy dental cement at many drugstores that can fill in the space where the dental restoration used to be. A piece of sugarless gum can also help. Just make sure it’s sugar free — anything with sugar in it will hurt!

Dental Problem: Knocked Out Tooth

How to Help It: Promptness is key with this dental emergency as the best chance at saving a knocked out tooth is to get it back into the socket within the hour. The first step is to find the tooth. When and if you do, do NOT touch the roots! Handle your tooth only by the crown, or the white part that usually shows in your mouth. You can gently rinse it with warm water if it’s dirty, but try to put the tooth back in its socket as soon as you can. If that’s not an option, put the tooth in some milk or keep it under your tongue and get to the dentist ASAP.

Prevention is Key

While these tips can help provide some relief, the best way to avoid a dental problem in the first place is to maintain regular visits and dental cleanings at least twice a year. If it’s been awhile since you’ve been to a dentist, we welcome you to call our Holland dental office to schedule an appointment. We will work with you to make sure there aren’t any potential dangers just waiting to pop up when you least expect it.

Accepting patients from Holland, Saugatuck, Zeeland and beyond. 

“What Do I Have to Do to Be a Dentist?”

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become a dentist Considering a career as a dentist? We may be biased, but the team at our dental office in Holland thinks it’s the best job you could have. Dentists, dental assistants, and dental hygienists are an important part of a total healthcare team, and are crucial to keeping patients healthy. Not only that, but they can also be responsible for transforming smiles and giving people a confidence boost which affects their lives as a whole. If you’d like to experience the rewarding feeling we get each and every day, dentistry may be right for you.

Will You Enjoy Being a Dentist?

Before we go into the specific steps on how someone becomes a dentist, it’s important to discuss the qualities and interests one should possess in order to be happy in this field. First, an interest and excellence in the sciences is recommended. Dentistry and the courses required to become a dentist are highly science focused, so it’s crucial to have an organic attraction to science. Second, dentistry is also incredibly artistic, so you should be good with your hands and be incredibly dexterous. Lastly, you should have a desire to help people — both in terms of health and beauty.

The Steps to Become a Dentist

After you’re able to identify that the basic, underlying characteristics of being a dentist interest you, you can start to outline the steps you need to take to become a dentist.

  • Complete Your Bachelor’s Degree. While you can get your Bachelor’s in anything, you’ll be one step ahead if you focus on biology, chemistry, physiology, and other sciences.
  • Score Well on the DAT. Following undergraduate school, you’ll need to take the Dental Acceptance Test and score well to be considered for dental school.
  • Go to Dental School. Typically, dental school lasts four years and includes a combination of classes and clinical work.
  • Take Your Board Exams. Before you can practice dentistry, you’ll need to pass the National Board Dental Examinations as well as any other requirements necessary for the state you wish to practice in.

“Will I Be Able to Find a Job?”

While the job hunt is always a daunting task no matter which industry you decide to enter, there’s some good news about the rising need of dentists from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Job availability is projected to grow at 18% through 2024, more than double the average growth for other careers.

If you’re seriously considering a career as a dentist, our Holland dental office recommends that you perform research on what dentists do and what your job environment could look like to see if it’s something that will make you happy.

Welcoming patients from Holland, Saugatuck, Zeeland and beyond. 

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