New Patients

Rinse your mouth with warm salt water (1/2 teaspoon of table salt in 8 ounces of water). Use dental floss and/or toothpick to remove any lodged food between your teeth. Apply over-the-counter Oragel or clove oil over the affected tooth. If your mouth is swollen, place an ice pack outside of your mouth or cheek. Do not put aspirin or any other painkiller against the gums near the aching tooth because it may burn the gum tissue. Contact a dentist as soon as possible.

Save any pieces of the tooth if you can. Rinse the mouth using warm salt water (1/2 teaspoon of table salt in 8 ounces of water); rinse any broken pieces. If there’s bleeding, apply a piece of gauze to the area for about 10 minutes or until the bleeding stops. Place an ice pack to the outside of the mouth, cheek, or lip near the broken/chipped tooth to keep any swelling down and relieve pain. Contact a dentist as soon as possible.

Retrieve the tooth, hold it by the crown (the part that is usually exposed in the mouth), and rinse off the tooth root with water if it’s dirty. Do not remove any attached tissue fragments or scrub the tooth. If possible, try to put the tooth back in place. Make sure that it’s facing the right way. Never force it into the socket. If it’s not possible to reinsert the tooth in the socket, put the tooth in a small container of milk or a product containing cell growth medium, such as Save-a-Tooth. In all cases, see your dentist as quickly as possible. Knocked out teeth with the highest chances of being saved are those seen by the dentist to be placed back into their socket within 1 hour of being knocked out.

See your dentist right away. Place an ice pack or any cold compress outside of the mouth or cheek in the affected area to relieve the pain, until you reach your dentist’s office. Take an over-the-counter pain reliever (such as Tylenol or Advil) if needed.

As a temporary measure, use over-the-counter dental cement, or any dental wax to cover the tooth. Do not drink hot or cold water, and avoid chewing on the affected side. See your dentist as soon as possible. See your dentist as soon as possible.

If the crown falls off, make an appointment to see your dentist as soon as possible and bring the crown with you. If you cannot get to the dentist right away and the tooth is causing pain, clean the crown, coat the inner surface with an over-the-counter dental cement, toothpaste or denture glue and place it back on the tooth if possible. Do not use super glue! Take over-the-counter pain reliever until you see your dentist.

Abscesses are soft tissue swelling from an infection around the root of a tooth or underneath the gums. Abscesses are a serious condition that can cause tissue damage and in certain situation it could spread to other parts of the body if left untreated. Because of the serious oral health and general health problems that can result from an abscess, see your dentist as soon as possible. In the meantime, try rinsing your mouth with a warm salt-water solution (1/2 teaspoon of table salt in 8 ounces of water) several times a day. Take over-the-counter pain reliever until you see your dentist.

Injuries to the soft tissues, which include the tongue, cheeks, gums, and lips, can result in bleeding. To control the bleeding, here’s what to do:

1. 1. Rinse your mouth with a warm salt-water solution (1/2 teaspoon of table salt in 8 ounces of water).
   2. Use a moistened piece of gauze or a tea bag to apply pressure to the bleeding site. Hold in place for 15 to 20 minutes, until the bleeding stops.
   3. To both control bleeding and relieve pain, hold a cold compress to the outside of the mouth or cheek in the affected area for 5 to 10 minutes.
   4. If the bleeding doesn’t stop, see your dentist right away or go to a hospital emergency room. Continue to apply pressure on the bleeding site with the gauze until you can be seen and treated.