The most common dental emergency patients experience is tooth pain.
No dental injury or sudden oral health concern should be ignored. However, it's understandable that you may be unsure how to respond in the moment. The most important step you can take to ensure the best possible outcome is to contact your Brookline dentist, Dr. Kovtun, as soon as an injury occurs or discomfort begins. Prompt evaluation and treatment can help relieve pain, prevent complications, and protect your long-term oral health.
Timely dental care is essential to resolving problems quickly and effectively. In many cases, prompt treatment can mean the difference between preserving and losing a natural tooth. For patients in Boston, Brighton, Allston, and Brookline—as well as those visiting from out of town—we make every effort to provide same-day appointments for urgent dental concerns.
Our team is equipped to treat severe toothaches, broken teeth, and knocked-out teeth with efficiency and compassion.
We encourage all patients—whether new or existing—to contact our office immediately if a dental emergency arises. When in-office treatment is not immediately available, we can also provide guidance on temporary measures to relieve discomfort and help protect the affected tooth until you are seen.
Chipped or broken tooth
If a tooth chips or breaks, a warm water rinse can improve comfort. If necessary, over the counter pain-relieving medication such as acetaminophen or ibuprofen may be taken. Do not take aspirin. If swelling occurs, a cold compress may be placed onto the cheek.Dislodged tooth
This is different than a tooth being knocked out. A dislodged tooth is loose but remains attached to some degree. In this emergency, try to place the tooth back into the proper position and then bite down to keep it stabilized until you reach our office.Knocked out tooth
Knocked-out teeth may be able to be saved, but time is of the essence. If a tooth is knocked out, the crown should be located and rinsed very gently. A knocked-out tooth should be handled only by the crown, not by the roots. It should not be scrubbed. If possible, the tooth can be replaced into the socket and held in place by biting down. If this cannot be done, the tooth can be kept in milk or in saline solution for transport to the dental office. The goal here is to keep the tooth hydrated until Dr. Kovtun can assess the situation.Food or object between teeth
Care must be taken to attempt dislodging food or another object from in between teeth. The first solution is to try to floss the object out or rinse it out gently. If an object will not come loose, contact our office, where we can use precision instruments to remove the lodged object.
