In Case Of Emergency

If your child is experiencing any of the conditions or symptoms below, he or she may need urgent dental care. Please call our office as soon as possible during regular business hours, or fill out the After-Hours form at the link below, so we can help.

After-Hours Emergencies

Grey or Black Tooth

Dental Trauma is not always witnessed. Often, teeth that have sustained dental trauma in the past can darken. If your child has a dark tooth, please call us to have your child evaluated.

Cut or Bitten Tongue, Lips, or Cheek

Clean the area gently with a cloth. Apply ice/cold compress to any bruised/swollen areas. If there is bleeding, apply firm but gentle pressure with a gauze or cloth. If bleeding does not stop after 15 minutes or it cannot be controlled by simple pressure, take the child to the hospital emergency room.

Bleeding After a Baby Tooth Falls Out

Fold a piece of gauze and place it (tightly) over the bleeding area. Bite down on the gauze for 15 minutes.

Avulsed or Knocked Out Tooth

For Primary or Baby Teeth

Do not try and re-implant the tooth. This can cause injury to the developing adult tooth. You will want to schedule an appointment with our office to evaluate if there are any tooth fragments or other unknown dental injuries.

For Adult Teeth Only

ACT QUICKLY AND WISELY so the tooth can be saved in the mouth. Unlike a baby tooth that is knocked out, adult teeth should be placed back into the socket as soon as possible. Time is a critical factor in saving your smile. Please follow these steps to save a knocked-out permanent tooth:

Locate the tooth immediately; do not leave it at the site of the accident. Pick up the tooth by the crown (the chewing surface) NOT the root. The tooth should be handled carefully. Touch only the crown to minimize injury to the root. If the tooth is dirty, gently rinse the tooth with water only. Do not scrub or dry the tooth.
Reposition the tooth in the socket immediately, if possible. The sooner the tooth is replaced, the greater the likelihood it will survive. To reinsert, carefully push the tooth into the socket with your fingers. Hold the tooth in place with your fingers or by gently biting down on it. Double check to make sure the tooth is properly placed.
Keep the tooth moist at all times. The tooth must not be left outside the mouth to dry. If it cannot be replaced in the socket, put it in one of the following:
- Emergency tooth preservation kit (such as Save-a-Tooth®)
- Milk or saliva in a cup
- If the child is old enough, the tooth may be carried in their mouth (next to cheek)
Regular tap water is not recommended for long-term storage because the root surface cells do not tolerate water for long periods of time. Only use water if none of the options listed above are possible.
Contact the office as soon as possible so that the tooth may be properly re-implanted back into the dental socket and stabilized. We want you smiling soon!

After-Hours Emergency Form

In Case Of Emergency

Toothache

Broken, Chipped, or Fractured Tooth