What to do During a Dental Emergency

If your child has a dental emergency, please contact us immediately. If you suspect an urgent medical emergency, please call 9-1-1 or take them to an emergency room.

Below are some of the most common childhood dental emergencies and helpful advice on how to deal with them.

• Bitten tongue, lip, or cheek: If your child has a bitten tongue, lip, or cheek, clean the bite gently with water and use a cold compress (a cold, wet towel or washcloth pressed firmly against the area) to reduce or avoid swelling. Give the office a call to help determine how serious the bite is.
• Object caught in teeth: If your child has something caught between their teeth, first try to remove the object by using dental floss. Never use a metal, plastic, or sharp tool to remove a stuck object. If you are unable to remove the item with dental floss, give the office a call.
• Knocked-out tooth: When a tooth or teeth have been knocked out, it is important to keep and preserve each tooth and bring your child to the dentist as soon as possible. To preserve the tooth, it must be kept moist. If dirty, gently rinse with warm water, but leave any tissue fragments in place. Then, if at all possible, try to insert the tooth back into the socket very carefully. If you can’t place it in the socket, place the tooth in the mouth next to the cheek, or place it in milk or water.  After preserving the tooth, call our office immediately. The faster you act, the better your chances of saving the tooth.
• Loose tooth: A loose baby tooth is normal.  If your child’s tooth didn’t loosen naturally, call the office to schedule an exam
• Cracked, broken, or chipped tooth: Contact the office immediately to schedule an exam. Locate any tooth fragments, place them in cold milk or water, and bring them with you to your appointment. To clean the area inside the mouth, use a warm water rinse, having made sure there are no tooth fragments between the cheek and jaw.
• Toothache: If your child complains of a toothache, rinse the mouth with warm water and inspect the teeth to be sure there is nothing caught between them. If the pain continues, use a cold compress to ease the pain. Over-the-counter children’s pain medicine used accordingly as directed may ease the pain. Schedule an appointment immediately.
• Broken jaw If you suspect that your child has fractured his/her jaw, try to keep the jaw from moving by using a towel to immobilize the jaw. Then, take your child to the emergency room as soon as possible.