Accepting New Patients
Accepting New Patients
When your child has a dental emergency, you need clear information and quick access to care. At Silicon Beach Pediatric Dental, we provide emergency dental services for our established patients throughout the greater Los Angeles area, including families from Marina del Rey, West Los Angeles, Beverly Hills, Santa Monica, and surrounding Westside communities. Here’s what you need to know about pediatric dental emergencies and how we can help.
Let’s be direct about how emergency care works at our practice. We’re here for our patients when urgent situations come up. If you’re already a patient and your child has a dental emergency, we’ll make every effort to see you the same day or guide you on what to do until we can get you in. And if something happens after hours? Dr. Ray’s personal cell number is on the voicemail. You’re not getting an answering service — you’re getting him. Building that relationship from the start means we’re there when you need us most. You can browse our pediatric dentistry services to learn more about what we offer.
Dental emergencies can happen at any time, and they’re rarely convenient. Understanding what counts as a true emergency versus what can wait until regular office hours helps you make the right call when something happens.
True emergencies that need immediate attention include knocked-out permanent teeth, severe tooth pain that won’t respond to over-the-counter pain relief, uncontrolled bleeding from the mouth, facial swelling that’s getting worse, or trauma to the face or jaw. These situations require prompt care to prevent long-term damage or complications.
Less urgent situations that still need attention soon include a chipped baby tooth without pain, a lost filling, mild toothache, or a small object stuck between teeth. These issues should be addressed within a day or two, but they’re not typically true emergencies that require after-hours care.
This is probably the scariest situation for any parent. Your child is playing, something happens, and suddenly there’s a tooth on the ground and blood in their mouth. Here’s what you need to know.
For permanent teeth, time matters a lot. If a permanent tooth gets completely knocked out, find it immediately. Pick it up by the crown (the white part), not the root. Rinse it gently with water if it’s dirty, but don’t scrub it or remove any tissue attached to it. The best thing you can do is put it back in the socket if possible and have your child hold it there with gentle pressure. If you can’t do that, put the tooth in milk or have your child hold it in their mouth next to their cheek. Call us immediately.
For baby teeth, the approach is different. We typically don’t try to reimplant knocked-out baby teeth because it can damage the permanent tooth developing underneath. But we still want to see your child to make sure there’s no damage to the surrounding area or the permanent tooth. Call us, and we’ll let you know whether you need to come in right away.
The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry provides guidance on managing dental emergencies and traumatic injuries in children.
Kids chip teeth all the time. Most chipped baby teeth don’t require emergency treatment unless there’s pain or the sharp edge is cutting the tongue or cheek. Rinse your child’s mouth with warm water, and if there’s any bleeding, apply gentle pressure with clean gauze. Give us a call, and we’ll determine whether your child needs to come in immediately or if it can wait until regular hours.
For permanent teeth, chipped corners or small fractures usually aren’t emergencies, but we want to see your child within a day or two. Larger fractures, especially those exposing the nerve, need faster attention. If your child is in pain or the tooth looks pink inside, that’s a sign the nerve might be exposed, and you should call us right away.
Toothaches in kids can range from minor discomfort to severe pain. Start by having your child rinse their mouth with warm water. Check for any food stuck between teeth and gently floss if needed. You can give age-appropriate doses of ibuprofen or acetaminophen for pain relief.
If the pain is mild and your child can eat and sleep normally, you can schedule a regular appointment. But if the pain is severe, comes with facial swelling, or includes a fever, call us right away. These symptoms might indicate an infection that needs immediate treatment.
According to the American Dental Association, a tooth abscess occurs when bacteria enters the tooth’s pulp through decay, gum disease, or a crack, causing infection and pus buildup. Dental infections can spread quickly in children, so we take these situations seriously.
While you can’t prevent every accident, you can reduce the risk of dental emergencies. If your child plays sports, invest in a properly fitted mouthguard. Custom mouthguards from a dentist offer the best protection, but even over-the-counter options are better than nothing.
Teach kids not to chew on hard objects like ice, popcorn kernels, or hard candy. These habits are one of the most common causes of chipped and cracked teeth we see. Also, avoid giving young children foods they’re not ready for developmentally. A toddler doesn’t need whole nuts or hard candies that could cause choking or tooth damage.
Regular dental check-ups help catch problems before they become emergencies. A small cavity that gets treated early won’t turn into a painful infection later. Dental sealants on molars provide extra protection against decay in the grooves where cavities often start. Taking care of small issues now prevents bigger emergencies down the road.
When you bring your child in for emergency care, we focus on making them as comfortable as possible while addressing the immediate problem. Dr. Ray Klein and Dr. Hayley Botwin understand that injured or hurting children need patience and understanding, not pressure.
We’ll assess the situation, take any necessary X-rays to understand what’s happening beneath the surface, and explain your options clearly. Our goal is to relieve pain, prevent further damage, and set up a plan for any additional treatment needed.
We practice minimally invasive dentistry, which applies to emergency situations too. If a tooth can be saved with a straightforward treatment, that’s our preference. If extraction is necessary, we’ll explain why and discuss options for maintaining space if needed. You’ll always understand what we’re recommending and why.
Emergency visits are typically covered by dental insurance, though coverage varies by plan. We’re in-network with most PPO plans, including Aetna, Delta Dental, Cigna, MetLife, and many others. You can see our full insurance list on our website.
Our dedicated insurance coordinator works to maximize your benefits and help you understand what your plan covers for emergency care. We’ll provide cost estimates before proceeding with treatment whenever possible, so you can make informed decisions without financial surprises.
Most dental emergencies can be handled at a dental office, but some situations require hospital emergency room care. Go to the ER if your child has severe facial trauma, difficulty breathing or swallowing, uncontrolled bleeding that won’t stop with pressure, or if they’ve lost consciousness after a facial injury.
The ER can stabilize serious injuries and rule out fractures or other complications beyond dental issues. Once your child is stable, they’ll refer you back to us for any dental treatment needed. We’re always happy to coordinate care with emergency room physicians to ensure your child gets comprehensive treatment.
This is why we emphasize starting dental care early and coming in for regular visits. When your child is already comfortable with our office and knows Dr. Ray and Dr. Hayley, handling an emergency becomes much easier. They’re not walking into a strange place with strange people when they’re already scared and hurting.
Regular visits also help us catch developing problems before they become emergencies. A small cavity that we can treat with a simple filling during a routine visit won’t turn into an infected tooth that causes pain at midnight.
Many of our established families appreciate knowing we’re here when unexpected situations come up. That peace of mind comes from building the relationship before you need emergency care.
If your child is experiencing a dental emergency and you’re an established patient, call our office right away. We’ll assess the situation over the phone and get you in as quickly as possible. If you’re calling after hours, our voicemail provides guidance on what to do and how to reach us for urgent situations.
If you’re not yet a patient but are looking for a pediatric dentist in Los Angeles who provides emergency care for established patients, we encourage you to schedule a regular visit now. Getting your child established with our practice means we’ll be here when you need us most. Dr. Ray Klein and Dr. Hayley are committed to providing quality pediatric dental care for families throughout Los Angeles, and that includes being there during stressful emergency situations. Contact us today to schedule your child’s first visit or to learn more about our emergency protocols.
It depends on whether it’s a baby tooth or a permanent tooth. A knocked-out permanent tooth is always a dental emergency — according to the American Academy of Pediatrics, permanent teeth have the best chance of being saved when placed back in the socket within 15 minutes [healthychildren.org]. Call us immediately. A knocked-out baby tooth is less urgent, but we still want to hear from you to make sure there’s no damage to the permanent tooth developing underneath.
Pick the tooth up by the crown — the white part — not the root. If it’s dirty, rinse it gently with water. Don’t scrub it. If you can, place it back in the socket and have your child bite down softly on clean gauze to hold it. If that’s not possible, put the tooth in milk and head to us right away. Don’t wrap it in a tissue or let it dry out.
If the pain is mild and your child can eat and sleep normally, you can usually schedule a next-day appointment. Call us right away if the pain is severe, won’t respond to ibuprofen or acetaminophen, comes with facial swelling, or your child has a fever. Those signs can point to an infection that needs prompt treatment.
Most PPO dental insurance plans cover emergency visits. We’re in-network with the majority of PPO plans, including Aetna, Delta Dental, Cigna, and MetLife. We’ll verify your benefits before treatment and walk you through what’s covered so there are no surprises.
Go to the emergency room if your child has severe facial trauma, difficulty breathing or swallowing, uncontrolled bleeding that won’t stop, or has lost consciousness. The ER handles the medical side of serious injuries. Once your child is stable, we can coordinate any dental follow-up care they need.
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