Do you have a troublesome tooth? Is the pain in the tooth unbearable? Is your pain getting worse during eating or drinking? Throbbing tooth pain is a sign of tooth damage, with 1 in every 4 (24%) Australian children and 11% of Australian adults having suffered toothaches at least once in their lifetime.
A toothache can be debilitating, triggering excruciating pain & facial swelling, and even flu-like symptoms. In many cases, a persistent toothache that won’t go away is treated as a dental emergency.
Our comprehensive guide on toothache relief discusses tried and tested remedies to ease the pain and swelling quickly. So, let’s begin.
How To Get Rid Of Toothache?
Are you looking for ways to stop toothache while calling an emergency dentist? Of course, you need instant relief from the pain, right. Hence, here are some easy and simple toothache relief remedies while waiting for a dental emergency appointment.
Ways To Get Instant Toothache Relief
To manage dental pain and relieve toothache, it helps to understand what causes it in the first place.
Nearly all toothaches are caused by swelling inside the oral cavity. The reason why this causes pain is because of the inflexible and rigid structure of the tooth.
In short, the swelling inside the oral cavity has nowhere to go, and teeth aren’t structured to withstand such pain and pressure. This pressure might feel like the tooth will explode, resulting in a dental emergency. Now the nagging tooth agony makes sense.
To ease tooth pain, it’s essential to reduce the swelling within the oral cavity.
With this in mind, here are the best ways to relieve a painful toothache and reduce swelling as soon as possible.
Over-The-Counter Painkillers
They are the fastest and safest ways to stop a toothache. However, not all over-the-counter painkillers are equally effective in decreasing swelling. Indeed, if the swelling is getting worse, you may need to visit the dental emergency department and bypass an emergency dentist. This way, you can get medical assistance while waiting for dental treatment. Facial swelling can block the airways, so getting urgent aid is essential if you’ve trouble breathing.
Cold and heat therapy
Reducing swelling and inflammation is the first step toward toothache relief. Take an ice pack or bag of frozen vegetables wrapped in a cloth and place it over the side of the face where the pain originates. The coldness will pass through the cheek, helping reduce swelling around the aching tooth. Lowering inflammation also reduces muscle spasms to numb the area, so you feel less pain.
A warm wet cloth or moist heating pad can be applied following the ice pack. Heat therapy helps reduce discomfort and pain from toothache by increasing the blood flow to the area, reducing any further accumulation of fluid in the tissues.
Saltwater Gargle
Salt is a natural disinfectant and is pretty much available in every home. All you need is to add a pinch of salt into a glass of warm water and gargle – that’s it.
This anti-inflammatory gargle helps remove trapped food particles and heal oral wounds.
Hydrogen Peroxide Rinse
Don’t like the idea of a saltwater gargle, try hydrogen peroxide. Mix equal quantities of hydrogen peroxide and water, rinse your mouth and spit it out.
Like salt water, hydrogen peroxide also decreases inflammation while gently cleansing the affected tooth.
So now you know how to get rid of toothache (at least for the time being), how do you access an emergency dentist?
Ways Of Accessing An Emergency Dental Appointment
The question is whether your regular dentist is available during a dental emergency when your toothache is flaring up.
The good thing is that most dentists keep hours aside in their daily schedule for dental emergencies, so if you don’t have a regular dentist, there’s bound to be an emergency dentist in your local vicinity that can squeeze you in the same day.
What Happens At An Emergency Dental Appointment?
The main goal of an emergency dental appointment is three-fold:
- Providing toothache relief
- Diagnosing the cause of toothache
- Recommending follow-up treatment plans to solve the toothache permanently
The emergency dentist does everything in their control to offer toothache relief and diagnose the cause of a dental emergency. They will likely remove the nerve inside the tooth causing the irritation and pain, repair the cavity with a temporary sealant and prescribe more potent painkillers.
Now you know how to get rid of toothache, how you can prevent it from recurring?
The best protection from toothache is properly caring for the teeth and gums. By doing so, the mouth remains healthy, helping to prevent tooth decay. To care for teeth and gums, you should:
- Brush teeth twice daily
- Floss once a day
- Limit consumption of sugary drinks and snacks
- Drink plenty of water
- Visit the dentist at least twice a year for a check-up
Dealing with toothache
When you experience a dull, sharp, or throbbing toothache, you must make an appointment with an emergency dentist. What better than contacting one of New South Wales’s leading dental care services – Paramatta Green Dental.
We offer same-day appointments in the event of dental emergencies like throbbing toothaches. Call now on (02) 9538 7875 to book an emergency dentist appointment with the friendly team at Paramatta Green Dental.
References
HealthDirect – Toothache and swelling
https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/toothache-and-swelling
Australian Government: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare – Oral health and dental care in Australia
https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/dental-oral-health/oral-health-and-dental-care-in-australia/contents/healthy-teeth#:~:text=Around%201%20in%204%20(24%25)%20Australian%20children%20aged%206,permanent%20tooth%20with%20untreated%20decay.
Australian Journal of General Practice – Common causes of ‘swelling’ in the oral cavity
https://www1.racgp.org.au/ajgp/2020/september/common-causes-of-swelling-in-oral-cavity