Can I have my teeth extracted during the epidemic? What should I do if I cannot have my teeth extracted during the epidemic?

We all know that tooth extraction is a common method of dental care. Many people will have their teeth extracted, especially when their wisdom teeth hurt. However, the epidemic is quite serious now, and most hospitals have stopped dental treatment services. So can you have your teeth extracted during the epidemic? Let's take a closer look!

Can I have my teeth extracted during the pandemic?

It is best to postpone tooth extraction. Many dental clinics have suspended services, especially in areas where the epidemic is severe.

During the prevention and control of the new coronavirus infection, the Municipal Health Commission has required all medical institutions in the city to comprehensively review the diagnosis and treatment projects they carry out, and strengthen risk assessment for diagnosis and treatment specialties and operation projects that may increase the risk of pathogen spread, such as stomatology, ophthalmology, otolaryngology, respiratory endoscopic operations, etc., and decide whether to carry out relevant specialties and diagnosis and treatment projects based on their risk level, hospital medical staff deployment, and protective material reserves. If relevant diagnosis and treatment projects are suspended, public announcements and patient explanations should be made, and necessary emergency medical services should be retained.

Before seeing a doctor, patients can obtain accurate opening information from the hospital through the hospital’s official website, WeChat public account, or consultation phone number, or make an online appointment to avoid peak hours.

What to do if you can't extract teeth during the epidemic

Delayed tooth extraction

Due to the recent severe outbreak of the novel coronavirus, dental clinics in hospitals and outpatient clinics have been temporarily closed. Tooth extraction is a surgery that can be postponed...

With the recent spread of new viruses, it is recommended that you postpone non-emergency treatments. The risk of infection in hospitals and clinics is slightly higher. Moreover, for non-emergency treatments, tooth extractions should be postponed... This is a better way to deal with it for both you and the medical staff...

Pain relief

For those who are currently in a special period, they can take oral cefixime capsules, metronidazole vitamin B6, and ibuprofen sustained-release capsules for drug treatment to control inflammation. After the epidemic is lifted, a thorough examination and treatment can be carried out to identify the affected teeth and perform root canal treatment.

Oral medications can temporarily relieve pain, and after the epidemic is over, you can go to the hospital to take different treatments according to the condition of your teeth. Teeth that can be preserved should be preserved as much as possible, and those that cannot be preserved can only be extracted.

If the toothache is severe, it means there is inflammation. It is not suitable to extract the tooth during the inflammation. The inflammation must be eliminated first. You can take oral anti-inflammatory drugs, such as metronidazole + amoxicillin capsules. The combination of these two drugs has a better effect. If the pain is severe, you can take oral painkillers, such as Difen.

Can I use my medical insurance card to have a tooth extracted?

Generally, dental treatment and tooth extraction can be covered by medical insurance. However, some expenses are not included, such as teeth cleaning, subgingival scaling, etc., and dentures and tooth repairs are not included. The specific needs are based on local medical insurance regulations.

Medical insurance cards can be used to reimburse dental expenses, but there are strict regulations for dental reimbursement. Only dental treatments of a therapeutic nature can be reimbursed by medical insurance, such as fillings, tooth extractions, and the cost of treating periodontal disease, gingivitis, and other dental diseases. However, medical beauty projects cannot be reimbursed by medical insurance cards, such as the cost of orthodontic treatments and teeth whitening.

What kind of situations are not suitable for tooth extraction?

Generally speaking, the following types of teeth should not be extracted:

1. Suffering from hypertension, coronary heart disease, diabetes, etc. If you suffer from the above diseases, you may develop serious complications and even endanger your life. Patients with severe cardiovascular diseases, hypertension>180/100mmHg or above, and fasting blood sugar>8.88mol/l are contraindicated for tooth extraction.

2. Bleeding diseases. For example, patients with hemophilia and idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura have impaired blood coagulation and it is difficult to stop bleeding after tooth extraction, which may cause severe bleeding and endanger life. For patients with leukemia, tooth extraction may easily lead to severe systemic infection. Therefore, these patients should be treated conservatively and tooth extraction is contraindicated.

3. Women who are menstruating, pregnant, or breastfeeding. This is for parents. Women should avoid tooth extraction during menstruation in principle, but extracting loose teeth during menstruation will not have much impact on the patient. Clinical practice shows that tooth extraction during the 3rd to 7th month of pregnancy is relatively safe. However, patients with a history of habitual miscarriage or habitual premature birth are prohibited from tooth extraction during pregnancy.

4. Severe liver and kidney damage and active liver disease. For example, chronic hepatitis and cirrhosis. Due to poor liver function, the content of prothrombin and fibrinogen involved in the coagulation process is reduced, resulting in a tendency to bleed. The wound after tooth extraction will bleed continuously.

5. In addition, tooth extraction should be avoided during the onset of malignant tumors and mental illness.

6. Parents who have been doing strenuous exercise or labor, who have been drinking alcohol, or patients who have been taking anticoagulant drugs for a long time should not have their teeth extracted.