Emergency Dentistry

Is my toothache a dental emergency?: Toothaches can develop due to infections, cavities, or physical injury, but the only way to confirm the cause is to have your mouth examined by our office. If you notice pain that does not go away or appears to be worsening, facial swelling, fever, or pimple-like bumps on your gum tissue near your tooth, call our office immediately.
 
How you should handle a toothache: Use dental floss to remove any food debris that may be stuck in between your teeth. Take ibuprofen if your discomfort does not get any better. Use a cold compress to bring down any swelling that may be present. Do not attempt to pop any pimple-like bumps on your gums as this can dramatically increase your risk for an infection.
 
How we treat toothaches: We’ll need to closely examine your mouth to understand what treatment would best address your symptoms. However, common treatments we’ve performed in the past include dental fillings, crowns, antibiotics/prescription oral rinses, gum disease treatment, root canal therapy, and extractions (which are only performed if all other options have been considered).

Is a chipped tooth a dental emergency?: Small chips in teeth are not typically a dental emergency. You’ll still want to give us a call to set up an appointment and allow our team to examine your tooth more closely as well as prevent the chip from getting worse. Even small chips can rapidly get larger, increasing your risk for developing decay. If you find any pieces of your tooth, bring them with you to your appointment.
 
How you should handle a chipped tooth: Hold on to any pieces of your tooth that you have and bring them to our office. Take painkillers as needed and apply a cold compress to your face to bring down any swelling. Avoid touching the damaged tooth or chewing any hard foods until you get seen by our team.
 
How we treat chipped teeth: Chipped teeth can be restored with tooth-colored composite resin if the chip is small enough. However, larger chips may require a dental crown or veneer if they are visible (and you care about maintaining the esthetics of your smile).

Is a cracked tooth a dental emergency?: Minor cracks to teeth are not necessarily a dental emergency. However, they do need to be seen by our office relatively soon (ideally the next day). If cracks are visible beneath the gum line, call our team right away as an infection could quickly develop. Pain while biting down is also a sign that microcracks are present, even if they aren’t visible.
 
How you should handle a cracked tooth: Avoid biting down on your tooth or touching it ahead of your appointment with us. Use a cold compress to bring down any swelling if present and take painkillers to manage discomfort.
 
How we treat cracked teeth: If the cracks in your tooth are relatively minor, we may be able to restore it using tooth-colored composite resin alone. In the event your tooth is moderately damaged, a dental crown could be necessary to prevent it from cracking further. Severe cracks could make the tooth inviable, meaning an extraction could be needed.

Are Very Sensitive Teeth a Dental Emergency?: Sensitive teeth can be caused by many different things, and not all of them are emergencies. Typically, tooth sensitivity qualifies as a dental emergency if it causes severe pain, lasts for multiple days, and/or only affects one or two teeth instead of all the teeth in your mouth.
 
How You Should Handle Very Sensitive Teeth: The steps you take to handle sensitive teeth vary depending on the situation; our team can help you figure out your next steps when you call our office. Try not to expose the teeth in question to anything that could trigger sensitivity, such as hot or cold foods. You may also want to avoid chewing with the tooth at all.
 
How We Treat Very Sensitive Teeth: Some tooth sensitivity is caused by weakened enamel, in which case a professional fluoride treatment or desensitizing toothpaste can help. In other cases, you might have gum disease or a tooth infection, in which case we’ll recommend the appropriate form of treatment.

Is My Knocked-Out Tooth a Dental Emergency?: Permanent teeth can be knocked out by a strong enough blow to the mouth and/or face. It’s always an emergency when a permanent tooth comes out of its socket, and immediate attention is required if you want to try and save it. You need to make an emergency appointment right away and be at our office in no more than one or two hours; any longer than that, and reimplantation may no longer be possible.
 
How You Should Handle a Knocked-Out Tooth: Find the tooth right away. Very carefully pick it up by the crown, which is the portion that sticks out above your gums and is used to chew your food. Rinse off any dirt or debris that you see, but do not scrub or touch the root during the process. Until you can get to our office, your priority should be to keep the tooth alive for as long as possible. You can do this by either putting it back in its socket or storing it in a sealed container filled with saline solution.
 
How We Treat Knocked-Out Teeth: Our first choice will always be to save the tooth. Steps will be taken to reimplant it into its original socket so that it will eventually rejoin with the bone tissue. Sadly, there will be times where the tooth is already beyond saving or is too badly damaged to be placed back in the mouth. When that happens, we’ll go over your options for tooth replacement – bridges, dentures, and dental implants – and help you select the best one for your circumstances.

Is a Lost Filling or Crown a Dental Emergency?: You don’t need immediate treatment if a filling or crown falls off your tooth, but you still need to have the restoration replaced as soon as possible. Old restorations often fall out of place, and when that happens the tooth will be more likely to become infected or damaged. Repairs need to be made in a timely manner.
 
How You Should Handle a Lost Filling or Crown: Save the restoration if you can. We might be able to reuse it if it’s still mostly intact. Keep the exposed tooth clean, and don’t use it to bite or chew. Crowns can sometimes be reseated with dental cement or a dab of toothpaste, but this is only a solution for the short-term and is not a substitute for professional attention.
 
How We Treat Lost Fillings or Crowns: If you still have the restoration, we’ll examine to see if it’s in good enough shape to recement in place. Some restorations are too old or irreparably damaged to be used anymore, so we’re also prepared to place a new filling or dental crown if the situation calls for it.

Is My Broken Denture a Dental Emergency?: A broken denture needs to be fixed or replaced as soon as possible. Attempting to use the prosthetic as you normally would can result in serious oral injuries. Since you need a full set of teeth to function normally in your daily life, it’s in your best interest to visit our office right away for damaged dentures.
 
How You Should Handle a Broken Denture: Do not wear the broken denture, and don’t attempt to fix it by yourself. Even with a “do it yourself” denture repair kit, the risk of damaging the denture to the point where it can no longer be used is too high.
 
How We Treat Broken Dentures: We’ll take a close look at the denture to see if the problem can be corrected with a relining or a quick repair job. If not, we’ll get you some new dentures. This may be a good chance for you to get implants for your dentures if you don’t have them already.

Is a Loose Permanent Tooth a Dental Emergency?: It’s normal for baby teeth to come loose, of course, but permanent teeth are supposed to stay attached to the jaw for the rest of your life. Any time a permanent tooth feels loose, call our office right away for an appointment.
 
How You Should Handle Loose Permanent Teeth: Do not touch the tooth at all, even with a toothbrush. If you need to eat between now and your emergency appointment, chew with the opposite side of your mouth. Sticky and hard foods should be avoided altogether for the time being.
 
How We Treat Loose Permanent Teeth: We’ll take X-rays of your mouth to see what the underlying issue is so that it can be properly treated. Ideally, we can take care of the problem without taking out the tooth, but there are times when an extraction will be the only option.

Is an Injury to the Gums, Lips, or Tongue a Dental Emergency?: In short, any time an injury to the soft tissues in or around your mouth results in bleeding, you should seek professional care as soon as you can, although your exact next steps depends on how serious the injury in question is.
 
How You Should Handle an Injury to the Gums, Lips, or Tongue: You should always keep a wound as clean as possible so that no debris gets caught in it. Rinse the area gently with water before anything else. Try to stop the bleeding by holding a piece of gauze or clean washcloth over the area for 10 minutes at a time.
 
How We Treat Injuries to the Gums, Lips, or Tongue: We can help treat minor oral wounds in some cases, but in situations where the bleeding has not stopped even after you’ve put pressure on the area, you should call the emergency room.

Is Jaw Pain a Dental Emergency?: It depends on what you mean by “jaw pain” If your jaw just hurts a bit for a little while, that’s not an emergency. Chronic or severe jaw pain, on the other hand, might be a symptom of a TMJ disorder or a serious oral health problem. Call us if you have any reason to think your jaw pain might be an emergency.
 
How You Should Handle Jaw Pain: Many kinds of jaw pain can be managed with over-the-counter pain medication or ice packs. You should visit an emergency room right away if you have a dislocated or broken jaw, as this can be a life-threatening problem.
 
How We Treat Jaw Pain: Our treatment for your jaw pain depends on what’s causing it in the first place. Sometimes we might give you a customized mouthguard to wear at night as part of TMJ therapy. In other cases, the pain might be a sign that it’s time for the wisdom teeth to be removed.

Food or other debris getting caught between your teeth can be painful, but it is usually only an emergency if you’re completely unable to remove it by yourself. To remove something that’s caught in your teeth, take some dental floss and try to gently push it out. Another method is to rinse with lukewarm water. Avoid using toothpicks or other sharp objects. They might seem like they’d be effective, but a misstep could result in a serious tissue injury. Don’t try to force out any particularly stubborn bits of debris; our team can gently and safely remove these foreign materials for you if needed.