Tooth pain today
If a tooth hurts now, call or WhatsApp us and say it hurts. We give people in pain the earliest time we have, at Wakad or Hinjewadi.
Draft, awaiting review by Dr. Swapnil B. Patil, BDS
In pain right now?
What helps now
- A painkiller you have taken safely before. Take it as the packet says. Do not take more to make it work faster.
- Cold on the cheek. An ice pack or cold cloth on the outside of the face, 20 minutes on and 20 off.
- Warm salt-water rinses. Half a teaspoon of salt in a glass of warm water. Swish gently and spit.
- Clear trapped food. Floss gently either side of the tooth. Food packed into a gap can cause a lot of pain.
- Sleep with your head raised. An extra pillow keeps pressure off the tooth, which often throbs more lying flat.
What makes it worse
- Putting a tablet against the gum. Aspirin held on the gum burns it.
- Heat on the face. A hot pack can make an infection spread.
- Very hot, very cold or sweet food and drink, and chewing on that side.
- Old antibiotics, or someone else’s. They may be the wrong ones, and they hide the problem without fixing it.
- Waiting because the pain has stopped. A tooth can stop hurting when its nerve dies, while the infection carries on.
Outside clinic hours
Send us a WhatsApp message with what is happening, and a photo if it helps. We reply when the clinic opens. For any sign in the red list above, do not wait for us: go to the nearest hospital emergency department.
- Wakad clinic
- Mon to Sat 9:30 am to 9 pm, Sun Closed
- Hinjewadi
- Mon to Sat 10 am to 9 pm, Sun Call to check
A knocked-out or broken tooth
An adult tooth knocked out
Every minute counts. Aim to see a dentist within the hour.
- Pick the tooth up by the white crown, not the root.
- If it is dirty, rinse it for a few seconds in milk or clean water. Do not scrub it.
- If you can, push it gently back into its socket and bite on a clean cloth to hold it.
- If not, keep it in a small cup of milk, or in the mouth inside the cheek. Never let it dry out, and do not wrap it in tissue.
- Call us on the way.
A child’s milk tooth knocked out
Do not put it back: it can damage the adult tooth growing underneath. Press a clean cloth on the gum to stop the bleeding, and call us so we can check the area.
A broken or chipped tooth
Keep any pieces in milk, rinse your mouth with warm water, and hold something cold on the cheek. Call us. A sharp edge can be smoothed, and a piece can sometimes be bonded back on.
What the treatment might be
Not urgent, but still sore?
Book a time that suits you, or message us. Tell us it hurts and we look for the earliest slot.