Toothache or Tooth Abscess After Hours: What Urgent Care Can Do Until You See a Dentist

A tooth abscess is a pocket of infection at the root of a tooth or in the gum, usually from deep decay, a cracked tooth or gum disease. It causes throbbing tooth pain, sensitivity to hot and cold, pain when chewing, and often swelling of the gum or face. The tooth itself needs a dentist, who can drain the infection and treat or remove the tooth. When you can't get to a dentist right away, urgent care can check the infection, prescribe antibiotics if needed, and help with pain. Facial swelling that spreads, or swelling with trouble swallowing or breathing, is an emergency.

Signs of a tooth abscess

• Severe, throbbing toothache that can spread to the jaw, neck or ear
• Pain when biting or chewing
• Sensitivity to hot and cold
• A swollen, tender bump on the gum, sometimes with pus
• A bad taste or smell in the mouth
• Swelling of the cheek, jaw or under the chin
• Fever and swollen glands in the neck

If the pain suddenly stops, the infection may not be gone. It can mean the nerve has died while the infection keeps spreading.

What helps at home

• Pain relief: ibuprofen, if it's safe for you, works well for dental pain. Acetaminophen can be combined with it.
• Rinse with warm salt water several times a day
• Use a cold compress on the outside of the cheek for 15 minutes at a time
• Avoid very hot, cold or sweet foods, and chew on the other side
• Sleep with your head raised

Don't put aspirin or other pills directly on the gum, which can burn it, and don't try to pop a gum abscess yourself.

What urgent care can do, and can't

Urgent care can examine the swelling, check for fever and spreading infection, prescribe antibiotics when there's infection beyond the tooth, and recommend pain relief. A clinician can't fill, drain or pull the tooth. Antibiotics alone usually don't cure a tooth abscess, so you still need to see a dentist within a few days.

Seeing a dentist

Call your dentist as soon as they open. Many offices keep same-day slots for emergencies. If you don't have a dentist, community dental clinics and dental schools in the Denver area offer lower-cost care.

When to get seen

Come in, or start with a telehealth visit, for tooth pain with gum or facial swelling, fever, or pain you can't control while you wait for a dentist. At an AfterOurs clinic, a standard self-pay visit is $175, and a self-pay in-clinic visit never costs more than $330. Telehealth is $75. We contract with all major commercial and government plans, including Colorado Medicaid and Medicare. Dental work itself isn't covered by medical insurance. See our tooth pain page and the cost and insurance page. Our post on swollen lymph nodes explains swelling in the neck.

Go to the ER or call 911 if you have swelling that spreads to your eye, neck or under your tongue, trouble swallowing, breathing or opening your mouth, a high fever, or feel very unwell. A tooth infection can spread to deep spaces in the neck, which is an emergency.

Where to find us

Four clinics across metro Denver, all ages welcome, se habla español:

• Hampden (Southeast Denver): 8 AM–11 PM daily
• Littleton: 8 AM–11 PM daily
• Thornton: 8 AM–11 PM daily
• Highlands: Mon–Fri 5–11 PM, Sat–Sun 8 AM–11 PM

Walk in, or book online.