In A&E with toothache

[Kakamora]

Have just arrived at a&e. Approached the desk and said I don’t know if I can be seen, I don’t expect anything in terms of work but help with pain relief.

IVe had a severe tooth ache for 3 days. Gone through 4 packets of paracetamol and ibuprofen. Not ate. Not slept. Been sick from the pain, shaking and sweating it’s been that bad. Sobbed last night it was so bad.

The man and the front desk really snottily asked me ‘have you been to a emergency reception before ?’ Made me feel like shit. I know it’s not a typical reason to come to a&e but I don’t have a dentist and I’m in agony. I’m in no less pain than people with medical reasons. I feel even worse now

aspenfrost don't be ridiculous of course a basic examination of the mouth is well within my capabilities.

But that doesn't mean I have insurance that will cover me for it and hence I won't do it. Plus primary care is on its knees and it is not a good use of my time examining teeth when that emergency appt could be offered to a patient who needs to see a GP, not a dentist. Who would you feel if you had a chest infection and couldn't get an emergency appt because it was taken by someone who should be at the dentist.

We do have to be firm on this as access to Gps is free and easier than dentists so otherwise it would take up appts that could be offered to medical problems.

OP the above is not aimed at you. I don't think you've done anything wrong and really hope you are sorted.

I am surprised that no one even examined OP, facial pain has many causes apart from toothache, just because you present with facial pain it doesn't always mean it's your teeth. I spent years being treated between doctors and dentists, ending up in hospital with a burst sinus abcess and finally being diagnosed with trigeminal neuralgia. I spent a fortune on unnecessary dental treatment. I hope OP gets the pain sorted out.

Just want to say I was in same position and in so much pain I pulled one of my teeth out myself. I finally got in as a emergency 5 days after the pain started as it was Xmas and dentist was closed. If you're desperate try oraljel and Clove oil to relieve pain. Only thing that worked for me apart of constant paracetamol and neurofen. I was still aching but nowhere near as intense.

I really hope you're feeling better. I've finally gone to get mine sorted and going to be charged £600 for the pleasure of two root canals

Tooth pain is worse than labour pain imo!

I think you have a lot of good suggestions op. Please let us know how you get on.

I’m assuming all the negative comments are coming from people who’ve never experienced dental pain? Especially coming from multiple teeth.

I don’t claim any unemployed benefits so not entitled to free dental care therefore I can’t afford it. The only painkillers I can afford aren’t working and so please do go on about how wrong I am for trying to go to the one place I could get free, more effective pain relief. Which I didn’t.

How are you feeling OP?

Name change?

Call 111 it could be an abcess or other nasty infection! Make sure you tell them about the shaking and sweating.
x

So did you go to dental hospital today then
LittleMissJellyBaby?

Or call 111
Or anyone?

Hope you have a plan, dental pain is awful

Severe toothache is a sign something is very wrong. It's not going to go away on its own. You should have sorted this over the weekend. A very quick Google search tells you what action to take.

I can't believe you wasted the staff time at A&E when they are already stretched beyond breaking point. Of course they stock stuff much stronger than paracetamol in A&E. I have been given Oramorph within minutes of being seen in A&E. I expect they just wanted to get you off the premises and no wonder.

Did you go to the Dental Hospital OP?

OP I have just seen that you weren't taken to the dentist after you were 8, and you're only 22 now. Not taking your child for regular dental checks is neglect and it wasn't any of your fault. I apologise for sounding so harsh.

In the Old days I read that tooth infection was one of the biggest killers

Makes sense I suppose

Poor OP

Penelope, your first post is really unkind and unnecessary, perhaps you could have read the post properly to begin with.

If the pain is that bad, cant you try and get some pliers and pull it out yourself or get someone to help? I suppose thats what we had to do in old days

Firstly OP I do feel for you. I used to get infections and suffer with re-current toothache. And I completely don't blame you because it sounds like you genuinely didn't know what to do and probably felt like utter shit....
However, I do think this is an interesting discussion. As a nurse myself I do get frustrated that people think the NHS (particularly GPs and A&E) have a responsibility to immediately fix your problems e.g. for A&E to provide pain relief in a non-emergency. That's not the reality we live in.
And I don't think that should be encouraged.
OP I really hope you are feeling better.

If the pain is that bad, cant you try and get some pliers and pull it out yourself or get someone to help? I suppose thats what we had to do in old days

Dont do this Op ! That’s kind of why so many people died !

The whole system for emergency dentistry seems incredibly flawed.

DD has recently moved house, too recently to find an NHS dentist. Her tooth promptly cracked and she was in agony. It took her several days to find anyone to look at it and when she did she was forced to pay privately. 111 told her she couldn't be in that much pain as she hadn't taken enough painkillers.
Eventually, sobbing down the phone she got someone to appreciate how much pain she was in and was seen. Dentist sent her away and she returned today for the extraction (£110)

By 6pm she was pouring with blood. Dentist now closed, emergency dentist told her to call 111 and she's sat in A&E at this moment (I'm partly writing this as I'm a bit worried about her and it's distracting).

There has to be a better system than this. Toothache is bloody agonising and has driven people to overdose. The system passes you from one person to the next without actually resolving anything.

OP, I hope you're feeling better. I wont offer advice and cures because I know ultimately nothing really takes away the agony until the tooth is pulled.

Toothache is the worst pain I have ever experience in my life (I have had 4DC too btw) it was truly dreadful. Still wouldn’t go to a & e though. I went to the emergency dental school and let their students prod me. I didn’t care and the relief o felt when they pulled my tooth out was truly wonderful! Find your local dental school and go along and get your self checked out.

Thank you for your comment Crabbyapple, you've just made the same point as me, but politely.

For those of you who think I have a terrible attitude, trust me, if you come to A&E with a TRUE emergency - a heart attack, an asthma attack, anaphylaxis or from a car crash, you seriously DO want my attitude. You will get 100% of my attention, 100% of my sympathy and 100% of my expertise, and I will ensure you get the correct treatment by the correct people. Stat.(i've never actually said that!)

A&E stands for accident an emergency. NOT everything and anything. If someone posted on here that they rocked up to see a dermatologist with chest pain, or an orthopaedic surgeon with a rash on their face you'd all tell them "YABVU"......but somehow to rock up to A&E with what ever happens to be troubling you (usually at 3am with symptoms that you've had for 6 months during which time you haven't bothered to register with a GP or take any pain relief and then REFUSE the pain relief that I offer you) is OK?

Someone said how dare I be annoyed with a patient. You wouldn't be annoyed with a patient that turns up at 3am with a chronic skin rash that they've had for 6 months and haven't seen their GP?? (this exact example happened)I am a human being, not a robot, and the same is true for every doctor and nurse. If you've (to the person who made the comment) never been irritated or annoyed by a patient (especially a drunk one who repeatedly tells me they pay my salary therefore I am their slave) then you should be sainted. I am not a dermatologist. I won't know what your chronic skin is because I specialise emergencies, not chronic skin rashes. Similarly I can only offer you pain relief and possibly antibiotics for your tooth pain (after examining your mouth and teeth, which I am perfectly able to do), I can't fix it because I'm not a dentist.

The reason OOH dental care is so shocking is 1)because dental care in the UK is largely privatised-and Brits don't like having to pay for something they think should be free- and 2) however bad your pain is you aren't to die from it and it CAN wait until the morning, unpleasant as that might be.

I've been in this game over 20 years. Come to A&E with a proper emergency and you will get world class treatment. The problem with the NHS is that its created an entire country of people who think that because they can buy a sandwich at tesco at 2am they can get medical advice & treatment for free at the same time. I've run out of patience(and so have MANY A&E staff) for people who are too disorganised/lazy/stupid/entited (with a small number of exceptions)to do anything to help themselves, yet expect immediate service with a smile, coffee and a sandwich (the opening request I've had more than once) at 3am.

Having said all that i hope the OP did get to see a dentist, and if she went to A&E I hope they gave her some strong analgesia.

Flame away.

When you're in pain you don't always know what to do, you just want someone to take the pain away, the hospital wouldn't even see op, that's not fair, Alfred, you now say you would examine mouth and teeth, offer analgesia and maybe antibiotics but op didn't even get that, no one expects a doctor to fix dental problems, they just want something to ease the pain. The reason many people don't go to the dentist when this happens is because they have to wait days to see anyone, even going private you rarely get seen however bad the pain is, it takes a month just to see a hygienist. It's the same reason some people go to a&e, you have to wait ages for a g.p. appointment, you must know that, you must see plenty of people who are waiting to see their own g.p. or the treatment hasn't worked, the district nurse didn't turn up, the carers didn't turn up, and they've lost faith. Nurse practitioners, minors and walk in clinics are there to deal with non life threatening illnesses.

Alfredrabbit It's not just about the pain though (which can be extreme, especially when a nerve is in the process of dying). A serious tooth infection can spread into the jaw and lead a pathological fracture and/or sepsis. I have had dental emergencies, and am lucky enough to have a very good NHS dentist who has seen me within the hour and, when necessary, referred me to maxillofacial surgeons. However, I can well imagine why someone with a major dental problem, and unable to access a dentist, could end up in A&E.

YANBU to be angry with people who turn up in A&E with a simple toothache, though.

The pain can be awful, you can die from infected teeth.

So sorry op.