If you have a painful toothache, then the best course of action is to go to the dentist right away. A toothache may or may not be serious, but the only way to tell for certain is to have your doctor examine your teeth. However, what do you do if you cannot get in right away and you need relief? Here are some suggestions.

Look inside your mouth:
The first thing you will want to do when have a toothache is take a peek inside your mouth and see if you can see what is going on in there. Are your gums red and irritated? Do you have a broken or chipped tooth? Perhaps you just have a piece of food lodged in between your teeth. If you can see what the problem is, then you can probably find a way to alleviate the pain, at least temporarily.

Pain medications and oral gels: After you have determined where it hurts, you might want to take a mild pain medication such as Tylenol. This might be effective at relieving some of the pain while you wait for your dentist appointment. Oral gels medications are also very effective.

Salt water rinse: Try rinsing your mouth with a cupful of warm salt water. Dentists often recommend this course of action and it could actually make you feel better. In fact, rinsing your mouth daily with salt water may actually prevent tooth decay in the future. Salt water is also very helpful for swollen and painful gums.

Ice pack: If you have still experiencing pain, then you might try an ice pack. If your toothache is mild, you can always try placing a small ice cube directly on the tooth. However, an ice pack placed on your cheek near the pain will also prove effective.

Don’t let your toothache get out of hand. Try one of these solutions today.