Bushcraft dentistry?!

[Harvestman]

Ok, maybe not dentistry, but sitting here with a raging toothache caused by complications after a wisdom tooth extraction, I got to wondering whether anyone packs anything that might be useful for a dental emergency in a bushcraft situation (apart from painkillers)

Say your axe head flies off and hits you in the teeth, or you get a bad dental infection/abscess. Is there anything in a standard first aid kit that would be useful. Does anyone carry a little bottle of clove oil?

I might, from now on. This really hurts!

[_mark_]

you really need codeine based pain medication or alcohol, bad toothache is acute pain and headache remedies don't even take the edge off! Salt is always good to have for a simple mouthwash.

[sandbender]

400 mg ibuprofen did the trick for me when most of my teeth were in bits.

[Harvestman]

After seing my dentist (who gave me clove oil), I was also given a set of care instructions (which I followed, but which didn't prevent the subsequent infection) - one of the things it said to avoid was alcohol.

[Chastiser]

neurofen plus is a good one. can only be sold by the pharmacist. apparently can only be taken for 3 days as they then become addictive.

worked for me while i waited for an abcess to get big enough so that i could lance it.

3 days worth might be a good thing to have in ya field first aid kit.

[_mark_]

Do you mean emergency in the field or down the local chemist?

[DavidJT]

If we are talking a properly remote location (days away from help), then I would say Anti Biotics, temporary filling material, painkillers, and proper medical mouth wash.
Anywhere in the UK then I'd say just painkillers until you get to see a dentist ASAP.

[drliamski]

I'll heartily agree with the salt water wash.

Sent from my HTC Desire

[bearbait]

Yup, oil of cloves, ibuprofen, and one of these in the FAK.

Someone else on this forum on a similar topic suggested, IIRC, sugar-free chewing gum as a temporary filling.

[southey]

Hahahaha my wife has just gone loopy reading this, firstly to the op go to your dentist and tell them it hurts, you may have lost your blood clot and it needs cleaning else it'll hurt for a long time! Do you smoke? Have you been playing with it with your tongue? Have you been running? These can all lead to your protective clot going. Do not out chewing gum into your tooth you will push infection causing material into the cavity and loose the ability to wash it out with a salt mouth wash every couple of hours till you get to medical aid, if your axe knocks out a tooth, firstly serves you right for not checking your kit , if you find the tooth, stick in your cheek like a hamster and get to a and e as they may be able to put it back in. Do not attempt to conduct any emergency dental treatments without prior instruction by a qualified instructor you will cause yourself pain and longterm damage in very short order. Any questions about dental issues should be directed at your dentist!


And one from me, how can you have toothache if they removed the tooth?

[Dark Horse Dave]

Not much use to you I know, but I thought I'd relate this little story:

I did a survival course with Chris Caine a while ago. He told us that during the time when he was living wild (15 years or thereabouts IIRC), he packed a broken tooth with pine resin. This apparently did the job just fine. When he eventually went to the dentist some years later, he says that the resin had set so hard that the drill broke and the dentist had the devil's own job trying to remove it.

Probably painkillers and a prompt visit to the dentist might be a better option for the rest of us!

[John Fenna]

On long trips I carry a "Dentanurse" kit (free from my dentist ) and a bottle of "Toothache Tincture" from the chemists along with my normal painkillers.
Chewing gum makes a god temp filling according to my dentist, while pine resin is the natural alternative for both chewing gum and fillings.
I have done a "field extraction" with my Leatherman tool...... OK it was one of my Cub Scouts who was losing a baby tooth and it was wobbling out of its socket and getting in his way eating ...an his Mum was there and watched (said Cub is now a chunky builder who could flatten me with one hand if he wanted..he is known as "Tank"...he bears no grudge!).
For short trips my Denplan insurance and a mobile phone to fix up an apointment at a local dentist seem enough insurance.

[WoodMan]

I reckon dental pain is the worse thing i've ever been through. I've had a lot of problems with my teeth over the years and find dentistry work very difficult I have had to be sedated four times in recent years for extractions and root canal work. I cannot imagine how people dealt with the pain in the days before ipobrufen. How do aminals deal with it? Glyn.

[Bushwhacker]

A multitool? - I pulled a bad tooth out using the pliers on it once and then swilled it with hot salty water.

[southey]

Either heal and survive or they don't eat through not being able too hunt and kill or inability to process the food and die from starvation or through infection.

[Harvestman]

Southey, your wife clearly knows what she is talking about, and yes, I did go to the dentist and say it hurts, yes I have got dry socket, and yes it is being treated. I followed the post-op guidelines properly, but I'm given to understand that one of the primary causes of dry socket is trauma caused in the tooth removal. let me tell you there was a LOT of trauma in this extraction - the tooth put up a heck of a fight, and came out reluctantly in pieces.

I wasn't seriously considering dentistry in the field, but more wondering if there was something that could be included in a FAK that might be of use, other than painkillers which I assume everyone carries.

I might look into the 'Dentanurse' kit that John Fenna mentions.

[southey]

Yay! Glad your sorted dude! That's the term she said but I forgot, doh, just to sat she's a registerd dental nurse in the Raf, now runs the centre that rebuilds broken soldiers faces and sorts very wonky smiles. On the field kit side her words were that if in the UK, pain management and promt medical air is the very best way, there is no reason to prolong any pain, if you can't see a dentist then go to a and e and ham up the pain, they will get a dentist to you and manage the pain for you. If your at sea or on an exped then your team medic should be trained in dealing with emergencies, or ask your dentist for advice before you go away. Make sure you medical insurance covers you for dentistry too. Keep it as clean as you can and manage the pain rather than fill the hole and risk further damage or infection unless you have the proper training with emergency filling kits.

Coolio!

[Shewie]

I've been having teeth problems for the last year or so, the result of not going to the dentist for 8 years

When Ibuprofen and paracetomol don't help with the pain the co-codamol is what you need, trust me it really does work.

Another vote for the Dentanurse emergency pack too, I picked on up from Boots a few months ago but haven't had to use it yet though.

[Harvestman]

Yay! Glad your sorted dude! That's the term she said but I forgot, doh, just to sat she's a registerd dental nurse in the Raf, now runs the centre that rebuilds broken soldiers faces and sorts very wonky smiles. On the field kit side her words were that if in the UK, pain management and promt medical air is the very best way, there is no reason to prolong any pain, if you can't see a dentist then go to a and e and ham up the pain, they will get a dentist to you and manage the pain for you. If your at sea or on an exped then your team medic should be trained in dealing with emergencies, or ask your dentist for advice before you go away. Make sure you medical insurance covers you for dentistry too. Keep it as clean as you can and manage the pain rather than fill the hole and risk further damage or infection unless you have the proper training with emergency filling kits.

Coolio!

Yeah, fundamentally, pain in mouth = tell the dentist. The biggest problem for me was that the day the pain was worst the dentist was closed for training and the number for another surgery that they gave was for emergencies only. I tried to call in sick to work but they laid a guilt trip on me so i took lots of painkillers and went in. Spent the shift regretting it, in pain and drugged up to the eyeballs. Saw the dentist yesterday and this is now day 2 of being off work. Part of the trouble is the strained jaw ligaments from the force needed to remove the tooth means moving my mouth hurts, and I work in a call centre. Add in the dry socket, and i'm not going back to work until this clears up. Talking through gritted teeth doesn't sound professional.

[southey]

Vertex?.....

[Harvestman]

I'm lost now, but I'll bite (even if it hurts!) ... please explain

Vertex? ????

[southey]

Haha nice! Sorry its a call centre operator I worked for in Scotland, there all over the place.

[Harvestman]

Nah, I work for Marie Curie, the end of life cancer charity.

Thanks for the explanation.

[bigbeewee]

The Oxford Handbook of Accident and Emergency has a single page of dental stuff

4 issues covering roughly a paragraph each.

At the end of each paragraph is simply says....

REFER TO DENTIST :-)

I fly blokes out of the middle of nowhere regularly with dental pain.

Best bet is
1. prevention rather than cure
2. Don't smash your teeth out

If you are expeditioning dental check ups are essential, I get my teeth looked at and chipped and scraped every time I'm home, I've had jobs that require dental Xrays annually (A bit over the top, but its for ID purposes as well)

Top tip is, if you are going into the field for a prolonged period and need prior dental treatment, plan to have it done well in advance, I have loads of guys who have had root canal done the week before getting on a plane who then go on to develop nasty absesses as the root canal has gone wonky.

When you are in the **** end of nowhere local dentists are unlikely to "regain"/repair your root canal, they'll just whip out the offending fang

Over the counterwise medication, Co-codamol and Ibuprofen used as directed on the packets and a hot water bottle help, clove oil is of some use, but ultimately Get to a dentist