When Should You Take Your Kids to a Pediatric Emergency Dentist?

Pediatric dental emergencies are any type of condition that is severely impacting the tooth, jaw, mouth, and/or tongue and requires immediate medical attention to remedy. Your child may need an emergency dentist if they have any of the following:

• A severely cracked tooth.
• A missing tooth.
• A severe soft tissue injury.
• A severe toothache
• A tooth that is loose. 
• Broken dental restoration(s) that are causing pain.
• Broken jaw/facial bones.
• Damaged jaw/facial bones.
• Dental abscesses.
• Extreme tooth sensitivity.
• Severe mouth pain.
• Severe swelling in your face/jaw. 

If you’re unsure if the symptoms that your child is experiencing would qualify as being a dental emergency, contact your pediatric dentist or a nearby urgent care clinic. They’ll be able to help you assess the situation and move you toward the appropriate medical avenue.

When a dental emergency strikes, it’s important that you’re stocked up on all first-aid essentials, including gauze, ice, disinfectant, cold compresses, and child-safe painkillers. These are vital when it comes to cleaning bleeding areas, managing to swell, and keeping the area clean as you move toward getting professional medical care.

Your next step should always be calling your pediatric dentist or, if they’re not available, heading to the nearest urgent care clinic. You should always know where to find your dentist’s emergency line information and have it somewhere that is easily accessible – such as on your fridge, in your wallet, or saved on your phone.

If something has been knocked out of your child’s mouth, such as a tooth or dental appliance, make sure to collect it and bring it with you to your appointment.

Dental emergencies are never planned and are sometimes unavoidable, with the most common ones being:

• A severe toothache.
• An abscess.
• Broken dental restoration(s) that are causing pain.
• Broken jaw/facial bones.
• Damaged jaw/facial bones.
• Deep soft tissue injuries.
• Severe tooth sensitivity.
• Tooth injury and/or trauma

Most dental clinics have an after-hours contact number that you can use in the case of a dental emergency. If they don’t, you can call another pediatric dental office that offers emergency services, or you can also go directly to urgent care.

If your child is experiencing a dental emergency, your first line of defense should always be a pediatric dentist.

In most cases, a dentist will try to accommodate an emergency visit so that your child can be seen as soon as possible. If the emergency occurs after hours, they’ll often provide an emergency number that can be called so that you can reach a member of their on-call team.

If you live in the Sacramento area and are looking for urgent dental care for your child, contact us at Bubbles Dental. We understand that the unexpected happens and are here to help you navigate your child’s dental needs quickly and empathetically. We offer safe, professional, and efficient emergency pediatric dental care to ensure your child gets the care they require when and where you need it. We serve patients from Sacramento CA, Lemon Hill CA, Pocket CA, Meadowview CA, Greenhaven CA, Hollywood Park CA, and surrounding areas.