Where Can You Go For A Dental Emergency?

Unfortunately, dental emergencies don't always occur during normal business hours. However, there are multiple options available for emergency dental care for treatment of severe pain, bleeding, or facial swelling at various times of the day or night. These options include:

Your family dentist

If you are experiencing a dental emergency and have a family dentist, they will usually attempt to fit you into their schedule without an appointment. Most general dentists will provide an after hours number that you can call to arrange treatment for the next day or to be referred to an available dentist if your regular dentist is unavailable.

Emergency clinics at dental hospitals

These facilities will often provide emergency dental care at modest cost, but they are often only available for limited morning or afternoon hours. This may be the best option for individuals who don't visit a dentist on a regular basis, or don't have dental insurance or have limited funds to pay for dental care.

Although the emergency care is performed by dental students, it is closely monitored and supervised by instructors who are licensed and experienced in dental care.

Urgent dental care centers

Modeled after medical urgent care centers, these facilities provide access to an emergency care dentist on a walk-in basis. Urgent dental care centers provide an alternative for patients who cannot get an appointment with their family dentist or need emergency care after hours.

These facilities are usually open from morning until evening, providing a variety of services from dental emergencies to general dentistry for patients who need work performed during evening hours. Many urgent dental care centers accept dental insurance plans and offer financing options for dental services.

However, these facilities are usually closed at night, leaving a single option available for late night dental emergencies:

Hospital emergency rooms

Most hospitals have an emergency dentist on staff for treatment of dental pain, infections leading to facial swelling, and profuse oral bleeding. These  facilities are available around the clock, but are the most costly option, and may result in expensive out-of-pocket costs, even if your insurance company agrees to pay for emergency care.

If you are experiencing severe pain, uncontrollable bleeding, or extensive swelling, it is not usually an option to wait for emergency dental care. Of course, you can minimize expenses if you can use the hospital emergency room as your last resort.

However, dental infections can be deadly, and dental pain unbearable, so don't delay in seeking emergency dental care (from those such as Family Dentistry Of Brick, PA) if it is needed.