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Dr. Angelica R. Rohner
(205) 870-0892
2045 Brookwood Medical Center Dr.
Suite 21 Homewood, AL 35209

Emergency Dentist — Birmingham, AL

Professional Care When Your Child Needs It Most

young girl with dental emergency in Birmingham

Children are not only highly energetic, but they’re also extremely clumsy. Unfortunately, that often leads to situations where their teeth pay the price. These urgent situations can be stressful and unsettling, happening when you least expect them to. If your child needs immediate dental care, our emergency dentist in Birmingham is ready to help right when you need it most. Dr. Rohner will do everything possible to make your kiddo feel better and bring you peace of mind. Give us a call and schedule your emergency appointment today!

Why Choose Angelica Rohner Pediatric Dentistry for Emergency Dental Care?

  • Same-Day Emergency Appointments
  • Board-Certified Pediatric Dentist
  • Advanced Dental Technology

What to Do in a Dental Emergency

  • Give our office a call. Our team will schedule you at the earliest available appointment, likely on the same day as your child’s emergency. When you give us a call, we’ll provide first-aid instructions to help you manage the situation in the meantime.
  • See Dr. Rohner for an emergency exam. She’ll thoroughly check your child’s mouth and take X-rays as needed to identify the extent of the issue. Using the findings, we’ll create a custom treatment plan to relieve your child’s pain and treat the problem at hand.
  • Get your child out of pain. We’ll work quickly to give your child the prompt relief they deserve while preserving as much natural healthy tooth structure as possible. Before you know it, your little one will be enjoying a beautiful, healthy smile once again.

The Most Common Dental Emergencies

We understand it can be hard to remain calm while your child is in pain. As mentioned earlier, the first thing you should do in any dental emergency is give our office a call. We’ll explain how you can get the situation under control while waiting for your appointment. Click on the icons below to learn how you can handle some of the most common pediatric dental emergencies.

Understanding the Cost of Dental Emergencies 

young girl visiting emergency dentist in Birmingham

It’s impossible to provide a set price for emergency dental care because every child and every situation is unique. During your appointment, our team will quickly evaluate your child’s situation and create a custom treatment plan that’ll offer the best long-term prognosis. We’ll also explain your financing options and help you select a payment plan that’ll keep your wallet happy!

How to Prevent Dental Emergencies

father teaching daughter how to brush teeth

No matter how many precautionary measures you take, your child is bound to experience some falls and bumps in their life. Fortunately, there are many steps you can take to drastically lower your little one’s risk of a dental emergency. Here are some tips to keep in mind:

  • Help your child maintain good oral hygiene (brush twice a day, floss daily, rinse every day with an ADA-approved mouthwash)
  • Keep hard and crunchy foods out of sight
  • Encourage them to protect their smile with a custom mouthguard
  • Do not let your child use their teeth as tools

Toothaches

Is My Child's Toothache a Dental Emergency? If your child’s toothache has lasted more than 24 hours, they are experiencing symptoms of an infection (like a fever), or the tooth the pain is stemming from is discolored, then their toothache warrants a call to our Homewood pediatric dentist. From there, we can treat the root of the problem while preventing any decay or infection from spreading.

How You Should Handle Your Child's Toothache Naturally, the top priority is keeping your child as comfortable as possible until they come in for treatment. To help, tell them to avoid chewing on that side of their mouth, and don’t give them any chewy, crunchy, sugary, or acidic foods. You can also give them a cold compress to place against the outside of their cheek. This will help numb the area and alleviate puffiness. If nothing else works, you can provide them with an over-the-counter pain reliever for children.

How We Treat Toothaches in Children First, we will need to pinpoint the source of the pain. That’s why Dr. Rohner will start their visit with an oral exam and X-rays. Once she has determined the cause of the toothache, she can review which restorative treatment option would be best, like a dental filling or dental crown.

Chipped Teeth

Is My Child's Chipped Tooth a Dental Emergency? If your child has chipped a tooth and they are in pain, then you should absolutely get in touch with our team. In addition to scheduling a time for your child to come in for treatment, we can walk you through the next best steps. Note: if the chip is minor and isn’t causing your child any discomfort, then you can wait a day or two for an appointment, but not much longer.

How You Should Handle Your Child's Chipped Tooth Step one is having your child gently rinse their mouth with water. In addition to keeping the area clean, this will rinse away any lingering shards of their tooth. To prevent a cut to their lips, tongue, or the inside of their cheek, cover the tooth with a piece of dental wax or sugarless gum. Again, sticking to soft, nutrient-dense foods (like oatmeal and yogurt) is a good idea since this will help prevent further damage.

How We Treat Children's Chipped Teeth In most cases, we can fix a chipped tooth with cosmetic bonding. We will use a lifelike composite material to restore the missing structure of their tooth. Not only is this a quick and painless process, but it also doesn’t require any alteration to their original tooth’s structure!

Cracked Tooth

Is My Child's Cracked Tooth a Dental Emergency? Not only are cracked teeth often painful, but they also can leave your child vulnerable to infection. For these two reasons, cracked teeth are considered a dental emergency. So, get in touch with our team the moment your child brings it to your attention, and keep an eye out for symptoms of small cracks, like pain when biting down.

How You Should Handle Your Child's Cracked Tooth Similar to toothaches, you can use a cold compress or an OTC pain reliever to help alleviate any discomfort your child is experiencing. You can also place a piece of dental wax or sugarless gum over the tooth to help avoid sensitivity. Lastly, make sure your child doesn’t chew on that side of their mouth. This can cause the tooth to split further.

How We Treat Children's Cracked Teeth Of course, the treatment will depend entirely on the severity of the crack. In most cases, however, a dental crown can be placed over the tooth to protect it from infection and further damage. If the crack is severe and saving the tooth is no longer an option, then we will need to extract it. Either way, we will go above and beyond to make the treatment process as efficient and comfortable as possible for your child.

LEARN MORE ABOUT TOOTH EXTRACTIONS

Knocked-Out Permanent Tooth  

Is A Knocked-Out Permanent Tooth a Dental Emergency? It is, and there is only a small window of time when Dr. Rohner can save your child’s tooth. So, whether they knocked-out a tooth while playing sports at school or while playing in the backyard at home, call us ASAP to schedule an appointment.

How You Should Handle a Knocked-Out Permanent Tooth We mentioned two to-dos above: call our Birmingham pediatric dental practice and get an appointment on the calendar. We also recommend doing your best to find your child’s tooth, and, if you succeed, placing it back in the socket. If it doesn’t slide back into position easily, do the next best thing: place it in a clean container filled with milk.

How We Treat Knocked-Out Permanent Teeth Luckily, there are some cases where we can save your child’s tooth. If you weren’t able to find it, it’s in poor shape, or there’s another reason why that’s not possible, then we will explore the other treatment options, like a space maintainer, orthodontics, or a dental bridge.

Knocked-Out Baby Tooth  

Is a Knocked-Out Baby Tooth a Dental Emergency? Most of the time, yes. However, there are some exceptions. If your child’s baby tooth was knocked out, but it’s around the time it would’ve fallen out naturally, then a same-day visit may not be necessary. The best thing to do is give us a call so we can learn more about what happened and help you determine what to do next.

How You Should Handle a Knocked-Out Baby Tooth Unlike a knocked-out adult tooth, a knocked-out baby tooth doesn’t require you to go to great lengths to keep the root alive. Instead, do your best to care for your child, like helping them stop any bleeding, and bring them into our office so we can determine if any follow-up care is needed.

How We Treat Knocked-Out Baby Teeth That depends on several factors, including how early their tooth was knocked out. If their adult tooth isn’t on the verge of emerging, then we may recommend a space maintainer, which will help prevent dental drift until their permanent tooth breaks through the gumline.

Bitten Tongue, Lip, or Cheek  

Is a Bitten Tongue, Lip, or Cheek an Emergency? Since even small cuts can produce a lot of blood, this dental injury can be shocking for both you and your little one. The good news is that – most of the time – it can be handled at home with two or three easy steps.

How You Should Handle Your Child's Soft Tissue Injury First, bring them to the sink and have them rinse their mouth with clean, cool water so that you can pinpoint where the cut is in their mouth. Then, use gauze or a damp, clean washcloth to apply pressure to the area, stopping the bleeding in the process. After that, you can use a cold compress to help numb the area and alleviate inflammation.

How We Treat Soft Tissue Injuries in Children Fortunately, soft tissue injuries can usually be handled quickly and painlessly at home. Of course, if the bleeding persists for more than 10 minutes – even after applying pressure to the area – then you should take them to the ER or call 911.

Broken Denture

Loose Permanent Tooth

Injury to the Gums, Lips, or Tongue

Jaw Pain

Something Stuck Between the Teeth