For most dental emergencies, such as a broken or fallen tooth, your dentist will treat you in their office. For more serious injuries, such as broken facial bones, you should go straight to the emergency room. You should decide all of these things in consultation with your dentist. If you have severe pain, fever, or swelling or bleeding that can’t be controlled, don’t hesitate to see your dentist or go to the hospital emergency room.
If left untreated, a dental emergency can lead to even more problems, including the spread of infections, tooth mobility, and even tooth loss. Toothache can have many causes, including tooth decay, a cracked tooth, an infected tooth pulp, objects stuck between the teeth, gum disease, sinus infections, and more. The longer dental problems go untreated, the more likely it is that they will cause permanent damage to your teeth or that they will justify serious and expensive treatments. If you have a broken or missing filling, stick a piece of sugar-free gum into the cavity (sugar-filled chewing gum causes pain) or use over-the-counter dental cement.
People are often reluctant to call their dentist when they have a dental emergency and wonder whether the situation really warrants emergency dental care and whether treatment is covered by their insurance plan. Remember that uncomfortable situations such as lost fillings, chipped veneers, or broken dental appliances do not count as dental emergencies. If the area is bleeding and doesn’t stop, see your doctor or go to the nearest hospital emergency room. A dental emergency is any circumstance that requires obvious and urgent action to treat severe mouth pain, discomfort, or injury.
See your dentist or go to the emergency room if you have severe bleeding, the bleeding won’t stop, or you are in severe pain. The Dental Care Cost Estimator sometimes groups services, which are often provided together to solve a specific dental problem, into treatment categories. A dental emergency is any mouth injury that results in uncontrolled bleeding, severe pain, or broken facial bones.
