Everyone knows accidents happen, but when a traumatic accident occurs in your life, it can dramatically affect you in ways you weren’t prepared for. Many people are worried about bodily injuries, breaks, or head trauma, but one area you may not think about in an accident is your dental health. Whether you were injured in a car accident, work-related incident, or medical malpractice case, you need to check in with a dentist to be sure everything is okay with your oral health.
Your oral health is important, not just for vanity, but also for your overall health. Having good teeth and gums helps you eat, first of all, but dental problems can affect other parts of the body and make you uncomfortable or leave you in pain. So if you have a chipped tooth, gum disease, or problems with your jaw after an accident, you may have a personal injury case on your hands. This means you have options for recovery and relief. Your health is the top priority, so waste no time in getting your issue checked out by a dentist. You never know if your simple problem could turn into a serious injury down the line. Here are a few steps you should take if you’ve suffered a dental injury after an accident.
Understand your injury and how serious it is.
The first step after an accident is to look around and assess the damage. You need to work to understand your personal injury before you can figure out the best way to treat it. So open up your mouth and look around in there to figure out what happened. If you have jaw pain or tension, try to notate exactly what is bothering you. If you lost a tooth, see if you can find where it went. The more information you have on your own, the more a dentist or medical professional can help diagnose your issue. This will also help you understand if you have a personal injury case to pursue.
Visit a dentist.
Once you have a handle on the situation on your end, it’s time to get some dental care. Don’t put off this step, because the sooner you seek treatment, the better the chances that you’ll make a full recovery. You may ask why is dental health important? Well, your teeth are connected to many nerves that can be affected by trauma, and the bones in your face are fragile and need care. Plus, you want to be proud of your smile, so good oral health matters.
If you are dealing with tooth loss, a dentist can set you up with veneers or another option. Or if you are having issues with bruising or bleeding of your gums, a dental professional can help stitch that up as well. More serious injuries may affect your jaw and bones in your face. A specialty dental professional will be able to help you with those health problems as well.
Seek compensation for your injury.
Once you’ve taken care of your teeth, it’s time to deal with those medical bills. Depending on the cause of your injury, you may have legal options to get fair compensation. There are specialty attorneys all over the country like personal injury lawyers in Birmingham, AL that will help represent you. If you were injured in a car accident in Alabama, and the other party was at fault, that party’s insurance company should be responsible for paying your bills. Or if the injury happened at work, worker’s compensation may be owed to you. There are also cases where medical malpractice or negligence caused an accident or injury. These can also be cause for a lawsuit. If you are entitled to money, work with a good lawyer to get your maximum compensation.
