Last updated · Dr. Jon Barnes, DDS
Dental emergencies never check your calendar first. A toothache that starts at dinner, a tooth cracked during a game, a filling that pops out at lunch — when dental pain hits, you need an emergency dentist in Mustang, OK who can see you fast during office hours. Here’s what to do for a toothache, how to tell what’s truly urgent, and what to expect when you come in.
What’s a Dental Emergency?
Not every dental problem is an emergency, but severe pain, swelling, bleeding that won’t stop, or damage from an injury should never wait. Call during office hours for same-day emergency dental care if you’re dealing with: The American Dental Association also has a helpful guide to handling dental emergencies.
A Severe or Persistent Toothache
A dull ache that fades may just be sensitivity — but a sharp, throbbing, or constant toothache, especially one that wakes you up at night or gets worse when you bite down, usually means something is wrong inside the tooth. Cavities, cracked teeth, and infections all start this way, and they don’t improve on their own. Don’t tough it out: an infected tooth can escalate quickly, and early treatment is almost always simpler.
A Knocked-Out Tooth
Time matters more here than anywhere else in dentistry. If the tooth is permanent (not a baby tooth), pick it up by the crown — not the root — rinse it gently without scrubbing, and try to place it back in the socket. If that isn’t possible, keep it in a cup of milk. Then call us immediately. The sooner a knocked-out tooth is reimplanted, the better its chances of surviving.
A Broken, Chipped, or Cracked Tooth
Save any pieces you can find and rinse your mouth with warm water. A cold compress on the outside of the cheek helps with swelling. Even if the break doesn’t hurt right away, a cracked tooth leaves the inner layers exposed to bacteria — it needs to be evaluated before it becomes a bigger problem.
A Lost Filling or Crown
This leaves the tooth underneath exposed and often sensitive to temperature and pressure. Try not to chew on that side, and keep the area clean. If you still have the crown, we may be able to re-cement it — bring it with you.
Swelling in the Face or Gums
Swelling that comes with a toothache often signals infection, and facial swelling that spreads or comes with a fever should be seen urgently. Apply a cold compress and call us right away — infections near the teeth can become serious if left alone.
Bleeding That Won’t Stop
Bleeding from the mouth after an injury should slow within a reasonable time. If firm pressure with gauze doesn’t bring it under control, or if the bleeding follows trauma to the teeth or jaw, you need to be seen the same day.
What to Do for a Toothache Before Your Appointment
While you wait to be seen, a few simple steps can keep things from getting worse:
- For pain: Over-the-counter pain relievers taken as directed can take the edge off. A cold compress on the cheek for 15–20 minutes at a time helps with throbbing and swelling.
- For a toothache: Rinse with warm salt water and gently floss around the tooth — sometimes the culprit is food wedged where it shouldn’t be. Never place aspirin directly on the gum or tooth; it burns the tissue.
- For a knocked-out tooth: Handle it by the crown, keep it moist, and don’t scrub the root. Speed is everything.
- For a broken tooth: Rinse your mouth, save the fragments, and avoid chewing on that side.
- For swelling: A cold compress on the outside of the face can help. Heat can make an infection-related swelling worse, so stick with cold until you’re evaluated.
These steps buy comfort and time — they’re not substitutes for treatment. The underlying cause still needs a dentist’s eyes and x-rays.
What Happens at an Emergency Dental Visit
Knowing what to expect takes some of the dread out of calling. At your emergency visit:
- We get you out of pain first. The priority of every emergency appointment is relief. We numb the area, assess what’s happening, and address the immediate problem — whether that’s draining an infection, stabilizing a broken tooth, or starting a root canal.
- We diagnose with imaging. X-rays show what’s happening below the surface: the depth of decay, the condition of the nerve, cracks you can’t see. That imaging is what turns a guess into a plan.
- We lay out your options. Sometimes the fix is straightforward in one visit. Sometimes the tooth needs further treatment — a tooth extraction, a crown, or a root canal — and we’ll explain exactly why, what each path costs, and what happens next. No pressure, no surprises.
Emergency dentistry is built into our schedule: the practice sets aside time each day for patients in pain, so calling in the morning usually means being seen the same day. After hours, call our office at 405-353-1333 for instructions. You can read more about how we handle urgent cases on our emergency dentistry page.
Why Not Just Go to the ER?
Emergency rooms are equipped for medical emergencies, not dental ones. An ER can give you pain medication or antibiotics, but it generally can’t treat the tooth itself — you still need a dentist to fix the underlying problem. Coming to a dental office first usually means a faster path to actual relief, and often at a lower cost than an ER visit.
Frequently Asked Questions
How fast can I be seen for a dental emergency?
Call as early in the day as you can — the practice reserves daily time for emergency patients, and most people in pain are seen the same day they call. The earlier you call, the more options there are.
Is a toothache always a dental emergency?
Not always. Mild, brief sensitivity to something cold can wait for a regular appointment. But severe pain, pain that wakes you up, pain with swelling or fever, or pain after an injury — those shouldn’t wait. When in doubt, call and describe what’s happening; we’ll tell you honestly whether it needs same-day care.
What should I do if my child’s tooth gets knocked out?
If it’s a baby tooth, don’t try to reinsert it — just call us for guidance. If it’s a permanent tooth, keep it moist (milk works well), handle it by the crown, and get to the office as quickly as possible. Our contact page has our phone number and directions — save it in your phone before you need it.
Can you save a tooth that’s badly broken?
Often, yes. Depending on the break, options include bonding, a crown, or a root canal with a crown — extraction is the last resort, not the first suggestion. The sooner the tooth is evaluated, the more of it can usually be preserved.
Don’t Wait Out the Pain
A toothache is your tooth asking for help — and the fix is almost always simpler when you come in early rather than late. If you’re in pain, dealing with a broken tooth, or watching swelling spread, call Buffalo Creek Dental at (405) 353-1333 during office hours for same-day emergency dental care with Dr. Jon Barnes. After hours, call our office at 405-353-1333 for instructions.
Our office at 201 S. Sara Rd., #140, Mustang, OK 73064 serves Mustang, Yukon, Tuttle, and the greater Oklahoma City area. Call now, or book online if it can wait for the next open slot. We’ll get you comfortable and map out the fix from there.
