When Is a Dental Emergency Really an Emergency?

It's 9 PM and your tooth is throbbing. Do you tough it out until morning, call the dentist now, or head to the ER? Here's the honest breakdown we give our own patients.

Call us right away (or first thing in the morning)

• Severe, persistent toothache. Pain that wakes you up or doesn't respond to over-the-counter relief usually means infection or nerve involvement. It will not fix itself.
• A knocked-out permanent tooth. This is the most time-sensitive emergency in dentistry. Hold the tooth by the crown, rinse gently, try to place it back in the socket, or keep it in milk, and get to us within the hour if possible.
• A cracked or broken tooth with pain. Exposed nerves need protection quickly.
• Swelling in your gums, face, or jaw. Swelling means infection, and infections spread.
• A lost crown or filling that hurts. We can often re-cement a crown if you save it.

Go to the emergency room first

If you have facial swelling with fever, trouble swallowing, or difficulty breathing, skip the dentist and go straight to the ER. Those symptoms can signal an infection spreading beyond the tooth, and that's a medical emergency.

Probably fine until your next appointment

A small chip with no pain, mild sensitivity to cold that passes quickly, a lost filling with no discomfort, or food stuck between teeth (try floss first). Mention these at your next visit so we can keep an eye on them.

The pattern worth remembering

Pain that comes and goes is your body's early-warning system, not an all-clear. Most of the true emergencies we see started as an on-and-off ache weeks earlier. If a tooth has been talking to you, request a visit before it starts shouting. And if you're in pain right now, call us at (559) 686-4940. We keep room in the schedule for exactly this. More on our emergency dentistry page.