Escapees May June 2015 Demo

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| May/June 2015 |ESCAPEES .67
Temporary Solutions for
Dental
EMergencies
By Ronald Dingee DMD, MPH #59338
When I plan for a long trip, I spend several days getting ready.
I have the oil changed, check the air pressure in the tires, check
fluid levels, stock up on food and water, make certain I have
my favorite tools and restock spare parts. I even go so far as
to make certain that my insurance policies are
up-to-date and call my credit card company
to let them know that I will be on the road.
The last thing I want is to be out in the
middle of nowhere with an unexpected
emergency that could have been pre-
vented with a little pre-planning. But, in
spite of all of the pre-planning, medical
emergencies can arise. One such medi-
cal emergency rarely written about is
a dental emergency.
L ast spring, my wife and I were on
our way from Southern California
to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. We
were in Flagstaff, Arizona, when
at 1:30 in the morning I woke up
with a nagging toothache. At first
it was just an ache, but it got
worse. I took a couple of Advil
and applied a cold compress
that helped, but only a little.
Being a retired dentist, I had
a good idea what was causing
the problem. We discussed the
options: we could go back home,
wait out the night and hope to
find a dentist open on Saturday
morning in Flagstaff, or drive to a
larger city where the chances would
be better that I would find a dentist. We
decided to drive the rest of the night to the
first big city we could find.
Continued ›››
“…in spite of all of
the pre-planning,
medical emergencies
can arise. One…rare-
ly written about is a
dental emergency.”