Symptoms & diagnosis
Emergency root canal treatment in Market Harborough
Severe toothache rarely waits for a convenient moment. If you have throbbing pain that keeps you awake, pain that painkillers no longer control, or a swelling, telephone us and say that you are in pain. We will arrange the earliest appropriate appointment, deal with the cause of the pain and make you comfortable before planning the rest of the treatment.
What counts as an endodontic emergency
- constant, throbbing toothache, especially at night;
- pain to hot drinks that lingers for minutes and is relieved by cold;
- a tooth that is too painful to bite on;
- swelling of the gum, cheek or lip beside a tooth;
- pain in a tooth that has recently been filled, crowned or injured;
- a tooth knocked out or broken in an accident — see dental trauma care.
If a swelling is spreading quickly, affects your eye or throat, or you have difficulty swallowing or breathing, you need medical help the same day: contact NHS 111 or go to A&E.
What happens at an emergency appointment
- Finding the cause. Even in an emergency we test the teeth and take an X-ray, because treating the wrong tooth helps nobody.
- Relieving the pain. For an inflamed pulp, removing the pulp tissue under local anaesthetic brings relief within hours. For an abscess, draining it and cleaning the canals does the same. A dressing is placed inside the tooth and a temporary filling seals it.
- Planning the rest. Once you are comfortable, the treatment is completed at a scheduled appointment — usually root canal treatment or retreatment, followed by a restoration from your dentist.
While you wait to be seen
- Take paracetamol and, if you are able to, ibuprofen, following the packet instructions; the combination works better than either alone.
- Avoid very hot food and drink, and chew on the other side.
- Sleep with your head raised on an extra pillow to reduce throbbing.
- Do not place aspirin or any other tablet against the tooth or gum — it burns the tissue.
- If a temporary filling has come out, a small amount of sugar-free gum can cover the hole until you are seen.
Do you need a referral?
No. You can contact us directly for emergency endodontic care. If your own dentist has already seen you, let us know what they found and whether they prescribed anything; we will write to them after your visit so that your records stay complete.
Why the pain, once gone, still needs finishing
Emergency treatment removes the pain, but a tooth with a temporary dressing is not a treated tooth. Left for months, the infection returns and the temporary filling leaks or breaks. Completing the treatment and restoring the tooth promptly is what turns an emergency into a tooth you keep.