Dental emergency in Berkane: what to do

What counts as an emergency

• Intense, throbbing pain that resists painkillers or stops you sleeping
• Swelling of the face, cheek or under the jaw, especially with a fever
• An adult tooth knocked out by a blow
• A fractured tooth with a loose fragment or a visible pink area
• Bleeding that will not stop after an extraction
• Any dental injury in a child

Swelling in the floor of the mouth, difficulty swallowing or opening your mouth, or any trouble breathing means going straight to hospital emergency care: these signs go beyond what a dental practice can handle.

Knocked-out tooth: the steps that decide its fate

An adult tooth that has come out of its socket can be replanted, but the window is short: the outcome is decided in the first hour.

• Pick the tooth up by the crown, never by the root
• If it is dirty, rinse it briefly in saline or milk — never under the tap, and never by scrubbing it
• Put it back in its socket if you can, then bite gently on a gauze pad
• Otherwise keep it in milk, in saline, or in your own saliva against the cheek
• Get seen immediately — do not wait until the next day

A knocked-out baby tooth is not replanted: doing so would risk damaging the adult tooth developing underneath. An appointment is still needed to check that developing tooth.

Toothache: easing it until your appointment

• A simple painkiller at the dose on the packet, respecting your usual contraindications
• Sleep with your head raised: lying flat increases the pressure and the pain
• Avoid heat on the area, which usually makes the pain worse
• Keep brushing the area gently: stopping makes the inflammation worse

Two common reflexes to avoid: placing an aspirin tablet against the gum, which causes a chemical burn; and taking an antibiotic left over from a previous prescription, which masks the infection without treating it and complicates the diagnosis. No antibiotic should ever be taken without a prescription.

An abscess does not clear up on its own

A dental abscess is a collection of pus against the tooth or the bone. The pain can stop by itself when the abscess bursts and drains: that does not mean it has healed. The infection is still there and will come back, often more widely.

Treatment means draining it and treating the cause — the tooth itself. An antibiotic, where it is indicated, supports that; it does not replace it.

Calling the clinic

Describe the situation precisely on the phone: how long it has been going on, how bad it is, whether there is swelling or fever, and what you have already taken. Those details determine how urgent it is and which slot we offer you.

Outside opening hours, go to the hospital emergency department in Berkane.