If you feel this is a life threatening emergency, please dial 911.

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About Dental Emergencies

It is possible to experience a dental emergency at any time. Unexpected accidents and other events can happen when a person least expects it. There are certain dental emergencies where it is essential to see a dentist within 30 minutes or less. Doing this can mean the difference between losing a tooth and being able to save it.

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Tooth Knocked-Out 
This situation will require immediate attention. If certain steps are taken after something like this happens, it is possible a dentist can preserve the tooth.

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*Do not touch the root of the tooth and pick it up at the top.
*Rinse the tooth to make sure it is clean
*Attempt to carefully put the tooth back in the socket. Have it in place and try to gently bite down.

*If putting it in the socket isn’t possible, put it in a small container. If possible, it should be put in a cup of milk.

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The sooner a dentist can work on it, the greater the chance the knocked-out tooth will remain viable.

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Tooth Out of Alignment or Loose Tooth 
When anyone has a tooth out of alignment or lose, they need to contact their dentist and immediately get an emergency appointment. It may be possible to carefully put a tooth back in its original position with light pressure. The tooth should never be forced.

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Facial Pain And Tissue Injury
This involves injuries that occur inside a person’s mouth. It could involve tears to the tongue, lips, mouth, and cheeks caused by lacerations or puncture wounds. When this happens, it is a dental emergency. After the incident, it is important to clean the damaged area as soon as possible with warm water. If a tongue is bleeding, it can be carefully pulled forward and gauze can be used to put pressure on the wound. In this situation, it is important to only use acetaminophen to alleviate the pain. Ibuprofen or aspirin should never be taken. Doing this could result in excessive bleeding because these medications are anticoagulants.

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Fractured, Chipped or Cracked Teeth 
Should a person have a chipped tooth not causing them pain, it is probably not a dental emergency. A dentist may be able to use some composite filling to repair the tooth or smooth out the chip. A tooth that is fractured or cracked is a serious condition and is a dental emergency. It could be evidence of damage inside a tooth as well on the outside of it. Severe fractures could result in a tooth not being able to be saved. Should someone experience a fractured tooth, there are certain things that should be done.

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*Carefully clean the mouth by using warm water to rinse.
*Should this be the result of facial trauma, a cold compress could be applied to the area to decrease swelling
*Acetaminophen could be taken to minimize pain.
*Painkillers should never be placed on the gum as this could burn gum tissue. This includes Orajel.

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To properly diagnose the condition an X-ray may be taken. Should the soft tissue in the tooth be damaged, a root canal may need to be performed. If the soft tissue is not damaged, a crown may be placed on the tooth. If a tooth is unable to be saved, a dentist will inform a patient of the options available to them.

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Other Dental Emergencies 
Any situation requiring immediate treatment by a dentist to save a person’s tooth is a dental emergency. Pain and severe tissue bleeding are always an emergency. Should someone have a serious abscess or infection in their mouth, it could also be considered an emergency as this could be life-threatening. A dentist will do what is necessary to save a tooth or make a referral for another dental professional if necessary.

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It is important to be prepared when an emergency happens and to not panic. People should consider keeping a small dental first aid kit with them. It is important for it to contain gauze, a small container, and lid, gauze, dentist contact information as well as some acetaminophen. Taking immediate action can provide the best chance of success when trying to save teeth.