What counts as a dental emergency
Routine checkups and minor problems can usually be scheduled within a few days. Emergency care is for significant dental trauma or symptoms that call for immediate treatment. Examples include:
- A cracked, broken or knocked-out tooth, or a loose permanent tooth
- Severe or worsening jaw, gum or tooth pain
- A tooth abscess, a pocket of pus under a tooth that can lead to a life-threatening infection if untreated
- Heavy bleeding in the mouth
- A lost filling or crown that leaves a tooth exposed to infection
Gum or tooth pain that lasts more than two days, or that does not ease with over-the-counter pain relievers, can point to serious infection or gum disease. Sharp pain when you bite down often means a broken or damaged tooth. Pain that appears within about 30 seconds of hot or cold food may mean damage or infection of the tooth pulp. Both need prompt care. Dental problems can also worsen other health conditions, and untreated infections can spread.
What can wait a day or two
Some issues are urgent but not emergencies: a small crack or chip, a lost crown, filling or bridge, a dull toothache, or food stuck between teeth. Tooth sensitivity to heat, cold or pressure is not an emergency unless the pain becomes severe. If you are unsure, call and describe your symptoms.
What to do until you are seen
- Chipped or broken tooth: save any pieces, rinse your mouth with warm water, press clean gauze on any bleeding and hold a cold compress to the cheek for swelling or pain.
- Knocked-out tooth: hold it by the crown, not the root. Rinse the root gently with water and, if you can, place it back in the socket. If it will not stay, keep it in a small container of milk and get to the dentist right away. Treatment within about 60 minutes gives the best chance of saving it.
- Lost filling or crown: cover the opening temporarily with a small piece of sugarless gum.
- Bleeding: apply steady pressure with clean gauze. If it lasts more than a few minutes, or you took a blow to the head, seek emergency medical care.
- Pain: over-the-counter pain relievers can help for now.
How we treat emergencies
Treatment depends on the problem. An infection may need decay removed and antibiotics. An inflamed or infected pulp may call for a root canal or removal of the tooth. A fractured tooth may be repaired with bonding or a crown, treated with a root canal or extracted, and a dry socket is cleaned and packed to ease pain and prevent infection. See how a dentist fixes a broken tooth and what to do about a chipped tooth.
Dentist or emergency room?
Go to a hospital ER for life-threatening trauma, such as a jaw fracture, dislocation, or swelling in the mouth area that affects your breathing. For tooth problems, a dentist has the training and equipment the ER usually lacks. Most ERs have no dentist on staff and can offer pain medication and antibiotics, then send you to a dentist. Read more in emergency dentist vs. emergency room.
Seek emergency medical care immediately for severe oral pain with a sudden high fever, because oral infections can spread to the bloodstream. After a serious accident, get medical attention first; we can treat damaged teeth afterward.
Common questions
How can I avoid a dental emergency?
Wear a custom-fitted mouthguard for sports, avoid chewing hard items such as ice and hard candy, never use your teeth as tools and keep gauze and acetaminophen at home.
Is tooth sensitivity an emergency?
Not usually. Pain from heat, cold or pressure may point to a cavity or follow a recent procedure. It becomes an emergency if the pain is severe.
Should I rush in for a small crack or chip?
It is often painless and not an emergency, and enamel-only damage can be smoothed or filled. Still, have it seen soon to prevent further damage. It becomes urgent if the root is exposed.
What if a permanent tooth feels loose?
That is an emergency. Gently press it back into position and see a dentist right away.
Can a dental emergency be life-threatening?
Sometimes. Oral infections can spread to the bloodstream, heart or brain. Seek care at once for severe pain with a sudden high fever.