Best way to stop toothache at home

At home, rinse gently, clear trapped food, use a cold compress, and take labelled pain medicine if suitable, then arrange a dental examination.

Toothache is a symptom, not a diagnosis. Bacterial decay, a fractured cusp, exposed dentine, inflamed pulp, gum infection, or an erupting tooth can each produce pain through different mechanisms.

Avoid very hot, cold, sweet, or hard foods and chew on the opposite side. Do not heat a swollen face, pierce the gum, or put aspirin, alcohol, or concentrated chemicals on oral tissue.

Pain with swelling, fever, pus, trauma, or difficulty opening the mouth needs urgent dental assessment. Breathing or swallowing difficulty is an emergency.

Ask what the examination and radiograph show, whether the pulp can recover, and which treatment will remove the cause rather than only masking pain.