Everyone should visit their dentist at least twice a year for routine care. However, in cases of dental emergencies, more immediate care is required. You should never put off emergency dental services because they can protect your teeth and save you from discomfort. Here are the things emergency dental care can do for you:

1. Relieve your pain

Tooth problems can be intensely painful since teeth are filled with nerve endings. A toothache can be difficult to ignore, and the pain from a chipped or cracked tooth can be intense. Emergency dental care providers can relieve your pain. An injection of local anesthetic will take away your pain immediately. It will also numb your mouth so your dentist can work on your affected tooth without causing you further discomfort. Once you are comfortably numb, your dentist will start on treatment that will treat the cause of your pain so it will not return once the local anesthetic has worn off.

2. Treat infections

Tooth infections can be serious if they aren't taken care of immediately. Your teeth are located very close to your brain, which means that any abscesses in your mouth can spread, infecting your brain tissue. Not to mention, tooth infections can be very painful on their own. Emergency dental care providers can prescribe antibiotics and treatments to remove bacteria and infections from your mouth.

3. Offer temporary and long-term solutions

Some dental emergencies can be taken care of immediately during your emergency dental appointment. Lost fillings and broken teeth can be bonded right away. Likewise, troublesome cavities can be filled at once. Some problems may require long-term solutions and multiple dentist's appointments. If that is the case in your situation, your emergency dentist can still provide immediate care that will tide you over until you can get the more thorough treatment that you need.

4. Help you outside of regular office hours

Most dentists practice during normal office hours. Unfortunately, emergencies don't always occur at convenient times. A dental emergency can happen late at night or during the weekend when most dentist's offices are closed. Fortunately, dentists who provide emergency dental care strive to see their patients as soon as possible. If you have a serious tooth problem, give your emergency dental care provider a call as soon as you are able. They will respond to your call in a timely manner and work to schedule you an emergency dental appointment as quickly as possible.