Do you offer emergency dental care on weekends or after hours?

We offer same-day urgent care appointments during our regular office hours, which covers most situations that come up with kids. For anything happening overnight or on a day we're closed, especially heavy bleeding, facial swelling affecting breathing, or a head injury, head to the nearest emergency room, then follow up with our office as soon as we reopen.

What should I do if my child's tooth gets knocked out at school?

Ask the school to keep the tooth moist, ideally in milk, and to call you right away. If it's a permanent tooth, getting it back in place or keeping it moist and reaching a dentist quickly matters a great deal, so head to our office or an emergency dentist immediately. If it's a baby tooth, there's less urgency, but you should still call us the same day.

Is a toothache always a dental emergency?

Not always. A toothache that comes and goes, or one that responds to children's pain reliever and salt water rinses, can usually wait for a same-day or next-day office visit. A toothache paired with facial swelling, fever, or pain that won't ease up is more urgent and warrants a call right away.

What should be in a dental emergency kit at home?

A small container of clean gauze, a cold pack, children's pain reliever with clear dosing instructions, and a carton of milk or a small container in the fridge work well for most situations. Keep our office's phone number saved in your phone so you're not searching for it during a stressful moment.

Is This a Dental Emergency? A Pickering Parent's Guide

A dental emergency for a child is any injury or pain involving the teeth, gums, or mouth that involves heavy bleeding, a knocked-out or badly displaced tooth, facial swelling, or pain severe enough that your child can't eat, sleep, or play normally. If you're seeing any of those, call our Pickering office right away, even outside your child's usual appointment time. We keep same-day urgent visits open during office hours for exactly this reason, so parents in Pickering, Ajax, and Whitby have somewhere to turn that isn't just the emergency room.

True Dental Emergencies: What Needs Care Right Away

A permanent tooth knocked out completely
A tooth pushed sideways, back, or up into the gum
A large piece of a tooth broken off, especially if pink tissue is visible inside it
Heavy or uncontrolled bleeding from the mouth
Facial swelling, especially near the jaw or under the eye
Severe pain that isn't relieved by children's acetaminophen or ibuprofen
A jaw that may be injured or won't open and close normally

Situations That Are Urgent but Can Usually Wait for Office Hours

These still deserve a call to our office, but they generally don't require rushing out the door in the middle of the night.

A baby tooth knocked loose or out from a fall
A chipped tooth with no pain and no sharp edges
A toothache that comes and goes rather than staying constant
A lost filling or crown with no pain attached to it
Mild bleeding from a bitten lip or tongue that stops on its own within a few minutes

What to Do Right Away, By Situation

Knocked-Out Permanent Tooth

This is the one true race-against-time emergency in this list. Handle the tooth by the crown, never the root, and follow these steps in order.

Find the tooth and pick it up by the crown, not the root
If it's dirty, rinse it gently with water only, no scrubbing and no soap
If your child can tolerate it, try placing the tooth back in its socket facing the right way
If it won't go back in, keep it moist in milk or your child's own saliva, never dry
Get to us or an emergency dentist immediately, time is critical

Knocked-Out Baby Tooth

Don't try to put a baby tooth back in the socket. Have your child bite down gently on clean gauze to control bleeding, apply a cold compress to any swelling, and call our office the same day so we can check that the surrounding teeth and gum weren't affected.

Broken or Chipped Tooth

Rinse your child's mouth with warm water and save any broken pieces if you can find them. A cold compress against the cheek helps with swelling, and a same-day call to our office lets us figure out whether it's a smooth-it-out fix or something that needs more attention.

Toothache

Rinse with warm salt water and floss around the tooth in case food is stuck and causing the pain. A cold compress on the outside of the cheek can help, and children's pain reliever given at the labeled dose is fine. Never place aspirin directly against the gum or tooth, it can burn the tissue.

Bitten Lip, Tongue, or Cheek

Clean the area gently and apply a cold compress. Most of these bleed a bit more than expected but settle within a few minutes. Call our office if the bleeding doesn't slow down or if the area looks like it needs stitches.

Back-to-School and Sports Season

We tend to see more dental injuries once school and fall sports pick back up across Pickering, Ajax, and Whitby. Playground falls, soccer collisions, and bike spills all show up in our schedule as September rolls in. A properly fitted mouthguard for any contact sport is one of the simplest ways to cut down on chipped and knocked-out teeth, and we're happy to talk through options at a regular checkup.

When to Go to the Emergency Room Instead

A small number of situations belong at the hospital rather than a dental office, because they involve more than just the teeth.

A suspected broken jaw
Facial swelling severe enough to affect breathing or swallowing
Any head injury involving loss of consciousness
Bleeding that hasn't slowed after ten to fifteen minutes of steady, direct pressure

How We Handle Urgent Visits in Pickering

If something happens to your child's teeth or mouth, call us first. We reserve room in our daily schedule for same-day urgent visits so kids in Pickering, Ajax, and Whitby can be seen quickly rather than waiting weeks for an opening. When you call, tell us what happened, how your child is doing right now, and whether there's still bleeding or swelling, that helps us get you in as fast as possible and prepare for whatever your child needs when you arrive.