When Should I Book An Emergency Dental Appointment?
If you have a dental emergency and need to find an...
Gentle Dental
Need an Emergency Dentist?
If you need emergency dental treatment or are in pain please call us urgently on 0508 GENTLE (436 853) or visit our Contact Us page.
We know dental emergencies can happen at any time. Whether you have knocked out a tooth or need relief for toothache, our emergency dental appointments are there to relieve your pain.
Knowing what qualifies as a dental emergency can be confusing sometimes. Any dental issue that needs immediate attention qualifies as a dental emergency. If you have toothache, tooth pain, cracked teeth,
broken braces, a broken or chipped tooth, or you have injured your mouth, teeth or gums or dislocated a tooth, don’t hesitate to book an appointment with our emergency dentist. Failing to see a dentist during this time could lead to more expensive or invasive dental treatments later on.
While waiting for treatment you can take over-the-counter pain relief including paracetamol or ibuprofen to ease the pain. Avoid eating or using the damaged area of your mouth. Using a cold press externally can help relieve pain and keep the swelling down.
If you are experiencing an emergency that is more severe and involves lacerations to the mouth or bleeding, visit your nearest accident and emergency department or hospital for treatment.
COVID UPDATE
At alert level 1, ALL of the restrictions placed on dentistry at the higher alert levels have now been lifted. We are now able to carry out non-urgent and routine dental procedures. We are however still practicing higher standards of infection control and hygiene protocols.
Gentle Dental
Need an Emergency Dentist?
If you need emergency dental treatment or are in pain please call us urgently on 0508 GENTLE (436 853) or visit our Contact Us page.
We know dental emergencies can happen at any time. Whether you have knocked out a tooth or need relief for toothache, our emergency dental appointments are there to relieve your pain.
Knowing what qualifies as a dental emergency can be confusing sometimes. Any dental issue that needs immediate attention qualifies as a dental emergency. If you have toothache, tooth pain, cracked teeth,
If you need emergency dental treatment or are in pain please call us urgently on 0508 GENTLE (436 853) or visit our Contact Us page.
We know dental emergencies can happen at any time. Whether you have knocked out a tooth or need relief for toothache, our emergency dental appointments are there to relieve your pain.
broken braces, a broken or chipped tooth, or you have injured your mouth, teeth or gums or dislocated a tooth, don’t hesitate to book an appointment with our emergency dentist. Failing to see a dentist during this time could lead to more expensive or invasive dental treatments later on.
While waiting for treatment you can take over-the-counter pain relief including paracetamol or ibuprofen to ease the pain. Avoid eating or using the damaged area of your mouth. Using a cold press externally can help relieve pain and keep the swelling down.
If you are experiencing an emergency that is more severe and involves lacerations to the mouth or bleeding, visit your nearest accident and emergency department or hospital for treatment.
COVID UPDATE
At alert level 1, ALL of the restrictions placed on dentistry at the higher alert levels have now been lifted. We are now able to carry out non-urgent and routine dental procedures. We are however still practicing higher standards of infection control and hygiene protocols.
Emergency Dentist
What's a Dental Emergency?
Common dental emergencies that may require URGENT dental treatment include:
- Toothache
- Lost filling
- Dental trauma or accident
- Fractured tooth
- Tooth knocked out
- Facial swelling
- Broken tooth
- Wisdom tooth infection
If you have lost a tooth through injury, you need to seek emergency dental care from a dentist or medical professional immediately. Seeing a dentist immediately will give your dislocated tooth a higher chance of being restored. While you wait for medical attention, there are a few things you can do to help save your tooth.
First, find your tooth and gently clean it with warm water. If possible, insert the dislocated tooth back into the empty socket. If this is too painful to do, hold it in your lip or wrap the tooth in cling wrap. These steps will help keep your tooth root alive. Try to avoid touching the root of the tooth at all times. If your tooth is broken you can store the tooth shards in a shallow dish of milk.
For other dental emergencies, you should see a dentist as soon as the pain or discomfort gets too bad. Severe toothache and other sudden injuries can sometimes be the result of underlying dental issues that could have been prevented.
Some injuries can be prevented by wearing a mouth guard. Toothaches can be caused by infections. These can sometimes be prevented by good oral hygiene and seeing a dentist regularly.
How Will I Know?
The Symptoms
Unfortunate things happen and can lead to a dental emergency, even those that involve little or no pain, can quickly lead to more serious and long-lasting damage if not treated promptly.
If something feels different or just “not right” we recommend you get in touch as soon as possible and one of our friendly staff will assess you over the phone to determine how urgent your dental emergency is.
We have same day appointments available so you wont have to wait long to get it sorted.
Handy Tips
What Can I Do Now?
Try these simple steps to help alleviate the pain or symptoms until you can book an emergency dental appointment.
- Rinse with warm salty water regularly
- Use a cold compress on the outside of the face
- Place any dislocated teeth back in their socket
- Store broken teeth pieces in milk
- Take pain relief medication
Blog
Learn more about dental emergencies and how to care for your teeth from our latest blog posts.
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FAQs
A dental emergency is anything that requires immediate medical attention. The most common types of dental emergency are toothache and tooth injury. If you are experiencing sudden tooth or jaw pain it can sometimes be hard to tell if you should seek emergency dental treatment. In most cases, tooth pain won’t just go away.
Dental pain is unpleasant and can be a sign of something more serious. You could be experiencing an infection below the tooth that needs immediate attention. Other reasons to see a dentist for emergency dentistry include chipping a tooth, losing a tooth or cracking a tooth. Whatever the reason for the pain you are experiencing there’s no reason to put off seeing a dentist. This will only make it worse and could result in tooth loss. ACC covers many types of injuries that result in tooth dislocation, fractures or broken teeth.
The best thing you can do is book an appointment with Gentle Dental. Our gentle dentists will be able to see you for a same-day appointment and treat the injury site. Severe injuries, such as broken jaws or lacerations of the face, should be treated by going to the emergency department at your local hospital.
Yes, toothache counts as a dental emergency. Toothache can be painful and debilitating. Toothache can prevent you from eating properly or using your mouth without pain. Many people that are experiencing toothache don’t realise they can book an emergency dental appointment to get it treated.
Toothache can come in many different forms. You may experience a throbbing sensation or sharp feelings of pain in your tooth or jaw. Pain in other parts of the body can also sometimes travel to the jaw and feel like toothache. You may experience pain in your temples, jaw, cheek or ears at the same time.
In most cases toothache usually occurs when the nerve in the root of the tooth gets irritated. The underlying reasons for a toothache could be gum disease, dental decay, dental cavities, dental trauma or an infection in the tooth.
Left untreated, the underlying cause of the toothache is most likely to get worse. If you are experiencing toothache, pain while chewing, swelling around your tooth, or are especially sensitive to hot or cold you should book an emergency dental appointment. We have same-day appointments especially so that we can see patients affected by toothache or other emergency dental situations.
As soon as you are experiencing a dental emergency, call the Gentle Dental offices on 0508 GENTLE (436 853) or visit our Contact Us page. Our receptionists will get you booked into an emergency dental appointment on the same day that you call.
The procedure for an emergency dental appointment varies from patient to patient. Our gentle team of dentists are here to assist you with whatever type of emergency you are experiencing.
If you need a tooth restored, a chipped tooth fixed or a filling replaced, we can do that immediately. If you are experiencing tooth pain our dentists will sit you down and ask you about your symptoms to try and determine the underlying cause of the pain. They will undertake a thorough examination of your mouth to get to the root cause of the issue.
During the appointment, our dentists will explain each procedure to you so that you feel comfortable during your treatment. We will also explain what treatment needs to be performed immediately, and whether or not you may need to come back for additional treatment. While you’re at your appointment your dentist will make sure you have thorough knowledge of the price of your treatment.
If you are experiencing tooth pain while waiting for emergency dentistry, there are some things you can do to help. For temporary relief from toothache you can take over-the-counter pain medicine such as paracetamol or ibuprofen as directed on the packet.
A cold compress to the outside of the mouth can help relieve pain and reduce swelling. Wrap a frozen ice pack or frozen peas in a tea towel and hold it up to your mouth. Hold it to the area for 20-minute periods at a time.
Rinsing with warm saltwater can help toothache as it helps loosen debris that may be stuck between your teeth. This is helpful if you are experiencing swollen wisdom teeth as food can sometimes get trapped between your back teeth and is hard to floss or brush out. Stir half a teaspoon of salt into a glass of warm water and rinse your mouth thoroughly.
These measures may help relieve your tooth pain momentarily. However, you should never rely on at-home solutions for treating ongoing tooth pain. Tooth pain is treatable and usually a symptom of an underlying problem. Booking an emergency dental appointment with Gentle Dental will ensure that you don’t have to continue to suffer.