Last updated 06.17.2026
What are the 10 things you should never do during a dental emergency?
Learn which common mistakes can make a dental emergency worse and what to do instead before getting professional care.
Doing any of the following can worsen a dental emergency and make treatment more difficult:
Place aspirin on your gums
Apply heat
Hope swelling will just go down
Use household adhesives to glue crowns
Wait to seek care
Poke at the tooth or area in your mouth
Self-medicate with leftover antibiotics or painkillers
Choose the ER over an emergency dentist
Eat or drink anything hard, hot, or cold
A dental emergency can be stressful, especially when you're trying to manage discomfort and decide what to do next. While some responses may seem helpful in the moment, they can actually make the situation worse or delay proper treatment. Understanding what to avoid can help protect your oral health until you can be evaluated by a dental provider. If you believe you are experiencing a dental emergency, you can typically schedule a same-day walk-in appointment at Aspen Dental. If you are not near an Aspen Dental office, look for a dental provider in your area that accepts emergency appointments.
Why your response in the first hour matters
Dental emergencies are not like minor injuries that improve with time. Most involve either structural damage or active infection — and both typically worsen with delay. According to the American Dental Association, nearly 2 million people visit emergency rooms each year for dental issues, many of which could have been treated more effectively by a dental provider.1 The mistakes below are common, understandable in stressful situations — and often avoidable.
Mistake 1: Placing aspirin directly on your gum or tooth
This is one of the most widespread dental emergency myths. When a tooth is throbbing, placing an aspirin tablet directly against the gum feels intuitive. It is not safe.
Aspirin is an acid. Direct contact with soft gum tissue causes a chemical burn that adds a new injury to the original problem. The result is a white, ulcerated patch on the gum that is both uncomfortable and slow to heal.
What should I take for dental discomfort instead?
Swallow ibuprofen or acetaminophen as directed on the label — never apply either directly to the gum or tooth. A cold compress held against the outside of your cheek can also reduce swelling and provide temporary relief while you arrange care. Cleveland Clinic's guidance on dental emergencies specifically warns against placing any painkiller directly against gum tissue.2
Mistake 2: Letting a knocked-out tooth dry out
If a tooth is knocked out completely, the clock starts immediately. The periodontal ligament cells attached to the root begin to die within minutes of drying out — and once those cells are gone, successful reimplantation becomes significantly less likely.
How long do I have to save a knocked-out tooth?
Under 30 minutes: Reimplantation success rates are highest. This is the critical window — act immediately.
30–60 minutes: The prognosis drops, but treatment is still worth attempting. Get to a provider as fast as possible.
Over 60 minutes: The outlook becomes poor. Periodontal ligament cells are unlikely to survive, making successful reimplantation significantly less likely.
Store the tooth in milk or saline solution, or between your cheek and gum — never in water from the faucet or a water fountain; this can damage the root cells. Do not scrub the tooth, touch the root — the pointy end that sits beneath the gum line connecting the tooth to your jaw — or wrap it in a dry cloth. Go to a nearby dental provider immediately.
Mistake 3: Applying heat to a swollen jaw or aching tooth
Heat feels soothing. For a dental infection, it is counterproductive. Warmth increases blood flow to the area, which can accelerate the spread of infection and intensify swelling rather than reduce it. A cold compress applied to the outside of the cheek — never directly on the tooth or gum — is the appropriate approach for managing swelling before your appointment. Use it in 10–15 minute intervals.
Mistake 4: Ignoring swelling and assuming it will resolve
Facial swelling, jaw swelling, or a visible lump near a tooth is almost always a sign of infection. Dental infections do not resolve without treatment. Left untreated, an abscess can spread to the jawbone, the neck or — in rare but serious cases — beyond. The American Association of Endodontists notes that untreated dental abscesses can progress to Ludwig's angina — a rapidly spreading infection of the floor of the mouth — which can compromise the airway and become life-threatening within hours.3
When is swelling a sign of something serious?
Seek care urgently if swelling is accompanied by fever, difficulty swallowing, difficulty breathing or swelling that extends below the jaw or toward the eye. These are signs that an infection has spread beyond the tooth and requires immediate attention. Do not wait to see if it improves overnight.
Mistake 5: Using super glue or household adhesives on a crown or broken tooth
A crown that falls off or a tooth that chips before an important event creates real pressure to find a quick fix. Super glue and household adhesives are not that fix.
These products are toxic when ingested, can trap bacteria inside the tooth, and make professional repair significantly more difficult. They are not formulated for oral use and can bond in ways that damage the underlying tooth structure.
Temporary dental cement — available at most pharmacies — is a safe short-term option for a lost crown. It holds the crown in place without the risks of household adhesives and is easy for your provider to remove cleanly.
Mistake 6: Waiting days to see if the discomfort goes away
Dental discomfort that persists beyond 24 hours is not resolving on its own. A toothache that lingers is typically signaling one of several things: a cavity that has reached the nerve, a crack in the tooth, or an infection developing at the root. None of these improve with time.
Waiting allows infections to spread, cracks to widen and what might have been a straightforward treatment to become a more costly one. If the discomfort is persistent, worsening or accompanied by swelling, you should schedule a same-day appointment. Not all dental providers offer same-day emergency appointments, so be sure to confirm availability before scheduling your visit.
Mistake 7: Poking at a broken tooth or loose crown
When something feels wrong in your mouth, the instinct is to investigate with your tongue or fingers. With a cracked tooth or a crown that has shifted, this can cause real harm.
Pressure on a cracked tooth can make the crack deeper, resulting in more tooth pain. Moving a loose crown repeatedly can damage the underlying tooth structure or dislodge it entirely. Once you identify the problem, leave the area alone. Avoid chewing on that side, eat soft foods and keep the area clean with gentle saltwater rinsing until you are seen.
If the broken edge is sharp and irritating your tongue or cheek, dental wax — available at most pharmacies — can be pressed over the edge to protect the surrounding tissue until your appointment.
Mistake 8: Taking leftover antibiotics without professional evaluation
It is tempting, when you suspect a dental infection, to reach for antibiotics left over from a previous prescription. This approach has several problems.
Antibiotics do not eliminate the source of a dental infection — they suppress it temporarily. Without removing the infected tissue or addressing the structural cause, the infection returns. Additionally, taking antibiotics without a current prescription contributes to antibiotic resistance and may mask symptoms in ways that make diagnosis harder for your provider.
The CDC estimates that at least 2.8 million antibiotic-resistant infections occur in the United States each year — a risk that increases when antibiotics are taken without a current prescription or outside of a supervised treatment plan.4
Mistake 9: Going to the ER expecting full dental treatment
Emergency rooms can treat life-threatening complications of dental infections — such as severe swelling, airway compromise or systemic infection — and may provide antibiotics or temporary symptom relief. They generally cannot perform root canals, extractions, crown repairs or other definitive dental treatment.
For most dental emergencies, going to the ER delays the care you actually need. If your situation is not life-threatening, contact your Aspen Dental provider directly. Many locations offer same-day emergency appointments and can treat the source of the problem rather than temporarily managing symptoms.
Mistake 10: Eating or drinking hot, hard or crunchy foods
What you eat before your appointment can make the situation worse. Hot foods and drinks can intensify throbbing in an inflamed tooth, while hard or crunchy foods can worsen cracks, fractures or loose restorations.
Stick to soft, room-temperature foods such as yogurt, scrambled eggs, mashed potatoes or smoothies, and chew on the opposite side of your mouth whenever possible.
The fix: Treat the tooth as already compromised. Avoid anything hot, hard, crunchy or chewy until your Aspen Dental provider evaluates the area.
When to see your Aspen Dental provider
Any of the following warrants same-day care:
A tooth that has been knocked out completely
Facial or jaw swelling, with or without fever
Throbbing or aching that has lasted more than 24 hours
A crown, filling or bridge that has come loose or fallen out
A cracked or broken tooth with exposed sensitivity
Bleeding that does not stop within 10–15 minutes
A visible abscess or lump near a tooth or along the gumline
Do not wait to see if these symptoms improve. Visit an Aspen Dental office near you — same-day appointments are available for dental emergencies, and your provider can evaluate the situation, manage discomfort and begin treatment the same visit.
10 worst things to do during dental emergency FAQs
Can I go to the ER for a dental emergency if I have no insurance?
An ER can provide temporary relief — antibiotics and discomfort management — but cannot perform dental procedures. If cost is a concern, Aspen Dental offers flexible payment options and financing. Delaying care due to cost typically results in a more complex and more expensive problem later.
Is a chipped tooth always a dental emergency?
Not always. A small chip with no sensitivity, no exposed nerve and no sharp edge may be able to wait for a scheduled appointment. However, if the chip is large, the tooth is sensitive to temperature or pressure, or there is visible damage near the gumline, it should be evaluated the same day.
Is a crown falling off a dental emergency?
It depends on what is underneath. If the underlying tooth is sensitive, sharp or visibly damaged, treat it as urgent. If the tooth feels fine and the crown is intact, temporary dental cement from a pharmacy can protect the area until your appointment — but do not leave it unaddressed for more than a day or two.
What should I do if I have a dental emergency on the weekend?
Contact your nearest Aspen Dental office. Many locations offer weekend hours and same-day emergency appointments. Do not wait until Monday if you are experiencing swelling, significant discomfort or a knocked-out tooth — time is a factor in most dental emergencies.
How do I know if my toothache is an abscess?
An abscess typically presents as a persistent, throbbing ache that does not respond well to over-the-counter medication, often accompanied by swelling, a bad taste in the mouth or a visible bump on the gum near the tooth. Fever is a sign the infection may be spreading. If you suspect an abscess, contact your Aspen Dental provider the same day — do not wait for the discomfort to worsen.
Sources
1American Dental Association — Emergency Department Referrals https://www.ada.org/resources/community-initiatives/action-for-dental-health/emergency-department-referrals
2Cleveland Clinic — Dental Emergencies: What to Do https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/11368--dental-emergencies-what-to-do
3 American Association of Endodontists — Abscess (Toothache) https://www.aae.org/patients/dental-symptoms/abscesses/
4Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — Antibiotic Resistance Threats in the United States https://www.cdc.gov/antimicrobial-resistance/data-research/threats/index.html
