Toothache? What to Do at Home and When It Can't Wait

Teeth rarely start hurting at a good time. Usually it's at night or over the weekend. Our short answer to toothache: what to do? is to ease the pain at home and call a dentist as soon as you can. Home remedies help you get to the appointment. They don't fix the cause.

Toothache: what to do at home before your visit

• An over-the-counter painkiller. Follow the leaflet and don't exceed the dose. If you're pregnant, have a chronic condition or take other medicines, ask a pharmacist first.
• Rinse with warm water to wash food out of the cavity. Not hot.
• Floss, not a toothpick, if something is stuck between your teeth.
• A cold compress on the cheek for 10–15 minutes at a time. Wrap ice in a towel so it doesn't hurt the skin.
• Chew on the other side and avoid very cold, hot or sugary food.
• Sleep with your head raised. Throbbing often gets worse lying flat.

iDenta dentist's tip: Before you call, jot down when the tooth hurts: when biting, after something cold, on its own or at night. Also note whether pain from cold fades straight away or lingers for minutes. Those two details help the dentist tell decay from pulpitis even before the X-ray. Write down which painkiller you took and when, too.

When a toothache is urgent

You need a same-day visit if the pain comes with:

• swelling of the gum, cheek or the area under the eye,
• fever or chills,
• trismus, meaning you can't open your mouth fully,
• pain that a painkiller taken as directed doesn't relieve,
• pain after an injury, such as a broken tooth.

If the swelling grows fast, spreads to the neck or under the tongue, or makes swallowing or breathing hard, this is no longer a dental appointment: call 112 or go to a hospital emergency department (SOR). A dental infection rarely spreads to the neck, but when it does, it is treated in hospital.

Dentist for toothache in Łódź: what we do and what it costs

Treatment depends on the cause, so we usually start like this:

1. You call, say you have a toothache, and we find the nearest free slot.
2. The dentist asks about the pain and checks how the tooth reacts to cold and biting.
3. We usually take an X-ray, as changes around the root can't be seen by eye.
4. After a local anaesthetic, the dentist gives emergency treatment.
5. We agree on the next steps and their cost.

Prices from our price list; the final scope is set after the examination.

When the pulp or periodontium is inflamed

With pulpitis the dentist removes the inflamed nerve or places a devitalising paste that stays in for 7–14 days (anaesthesia is included in the price). With apical periodontitis, as part of emergency care, we open the tooth and clean the canals to relieve pressure and pain. That is only the first stage. The root canal treatment then has to be completed (one canal from 500 zł) and the tooth restored.

iDenta dentist's tip: When the pain settles after emergency care, patients often put off the next visit. At that point, though, the canals are only cleaned and temporarily sealed. Left unfinished, the inflammation often comes back, and a weakened tooth under a temporary filling cracks easily. Book the follow-up before you leave the surgery.

When you need a surgeon

A swollen gum or cheek often means periostitis with an abscess. An abscess incision helps: under local anaesthetic the dentist makes a small cut and places a drain so the pus can escape. Pericoronitis around an erupting wisdom tooth, or a dry socket after an extraction, is rinsed with antiseptic and dressed. If the tooth can't be saved, the oral surgeon removes it: a single-root tooth from 350 zł, a wisdom tooth from 700 zł. More in our article on wisdom tooth removal.

When decay or a crack is to blame

If decay hasn't reached the pulp, treating the tooth with a filling is usually enough: early decay from 350 zł, deep decay from 400 zł. A cracked tooth is rebuilt or protected, depending on how deep the crack goes.

Toothache in Łódź? How to book

Phone is quickest: +48 731 771 877. Say you have a toothache, since when, and whether there's swelling or fever. We're at ul. Nawrot 48, Łódź, Monday to Friday 9:00–19:00 and Saturday 10:00–16:00. More on our contact page.