What counts as a dental emergency
Severe or persistent toothache, especially if it keeps you awake or comes with swelling. A tooth that is broken with a sharp edge. A tooth that has been knocked out or pushed out of position. A lost crown or filling. Facial swelling or a dental abscess. Bleeding that will not stop after 20 minutes of firm pressure.
Also: trauma to the jaw, a cut to the face or lip, and any dental injury in a child. If you are unsure whether something counts, call. We would rather have a quick conversation than have you sit in pain for three days.
What to do right now
If you have a knocked-out adult tooth, hold it by the crown — never the root — rinse it gently in milk or saline if it is dirty, and try to put it back in the socket and bite gently on a clean cloth. If you cannot reinsert it, keep it in milk and get to us. Best chances for reattachment are within the first hour.
For toothache, take ibuprofen and acetaminophen together if you can safely do so. Keep your head elevated when you lie down, and keep the affected side away from hot food. Do not apply aspirin directly to the gum — it burns the tissue.
For a broken or chipped tooth, rinse with warm salt water and cover any sharp edge with sugar-free gum if you need to. If the break is severe and the tooth is bleeding, apply gentle pressure with clean gauze.
What we do in an emergency visit
We start by getting you out of pain. That is usually achieved the same day with a filling, a temporary crown, a root canal or the removal of an infected tooth, depending on what is causing the problem.
Once you are comfortable we talk about the definitive fix. A tooth that has broken may need a crown rather than a filling; an abscess may need a root canal and a crown; a knocked-out tooth may need to be splinted and monitored. We explain the options, the cost and the timeline, and you decide with no pressure.
