A toothache that pounds without any trigger, wakes you at night, or makes one side of your face ache gets diagnosed and treated the same day at our Belmont Cragin office. Call (773) 555-0199 and we hold you a time at 8:00 AM, 11:00 AM or 1:00 PM, Monday through Friday. Call before you come; there's no walk-in list.
The $99 covers an emergency exam, consultation and panoramic X-ray. Fees may be adjusted due to complications or unforeseen circumstances. Treatment is priced separately and quoted to you in writing before any work starts.
Same-day appointments · $99 exam + X-ray · Phones answered 24/7 · Se habla español
Signs you need severe toothache relief today
A twinge that fades in a second is one thing. The toothaches that need a dentist today are different. The pain lingers for minutes after hot or cold. It starts by itself, often at night when you lie down. It pulses with your heartbeat. Chewing on the tooth sends a jolt. The gum beside it is swollen or has a pimple-like bump.
Each of those points to a cause we find on the X-ray: decay that has worked down to the nerve, a crack running through the tooth, a gum infection around the root, or an abscess, which is a pocket of pus at the root tip or in the gum. A tooth that suddenly stops hurting after days of agony is not healed. The nerve has often died, and the infection is still there.
Go to a hospital emergency room first if swelling has spread to the eye or down the neck, if you have a fever with it, or if swallowing or breathing is hard. Hospitals treat spreading infection and injuries; they generally don't treat the tooth itself. When they release you, phone us next.
What happens at your same-day visit
Questions come first: what the pain feels like and what sets it off. Then our dentist examines the tooth and takes a panoramic X-ray. It shows every tooth and both jaws in one image: decay hidden between teeth or under an old crown, a dark shadow at a root tip where infection has eaten bone, and bone loss from gum disease. Tapping, cold and a bite test round out the picture. You get a plain explanation and a written price. Then we treat the cause, the same day, when the treatment is one we do here.
A tooth cracked through the root or too decayed to rebuild comes out; see our emergency tooth extraction page. An abscess is drained and the infection cleared, with antibiotics when needed; our dental abscess treatment page explains that. A gum infection around a loose tooth is covered on our swollen and bleeding gums page.
When the tooth can be kept and needs something else, we explain what the tooth needs and the next step.
Cost of severe toothache relief in Chicago
The $99 covers the exam, the consultation and the panoramic X-ray. Treatment is a separate charge, quoted in writing once we know what's wrong, because draining an abscess and surgically removing a cracked molar are different procedures. You see your figure and agree before anything starts.
We work with most PPO plans, many Medicare dental plans and selected HMO plans. If your coverage is on our list, the exam and X-ray are billed to your plan. CareCredit, Cherry, Sunbit, Eve Financial and Proceed financing are available; mention it when you call if you want to use one. Our cost and insurance page has the full breakdown, line by line.
Why patients choose our Belmont Cragin office
We open at 7:00 AM, Monday through Friday, so a toothache that kept you up can be looked at before work. Any hour you call, a person answers. Once the front desk has gone home, that's our answering service, which notes your details and holds a 7:00 AM spot the next business morning for you. Call after 1:00 PM on a weekday and we may be able to see you later that day by appointment; if not, you get the first slot the next morning. Exam, X-ray, diagnosis and treatment are done in one place by our Illinois-licensed dentists. Parking on site; open since 2025.
Severe toothache relief near you on Chicago's Northwest Side
Our office is at 5841 W Belmont Ave, Chicago, IL 60634, on the north side of W Belmont Ave between N Central Ave and N Austin Ave, about a mile from Riis Park. The CTA 77 Belmont bus stops along the avenue. From Belmont Cragin, it's 3 to 6 minutes along Belmont or Central. From Hermosa, take W Fullerton Ave west to N Central Ave and go north to Belmont, 7 to 12 minutes. From Dunning, it's straight east on W Belmont Ave, 6 to 10 minutes.
Frequently asked questions
What's safe to take for a severe toothache tonight?
A pain reliever off the pharmacy shelf, taken strictly by the package directions, is the usual choice. Never place aspirin or any tablet against the gum; it burns the tissue. Rinse with warm salt water. Hold something cold to the cheek in 15-minute stretches. Then call (773) 555-0199 for the first slot.
Why does my tooth hurt more at night?
When you lie down, more blood reaches your head, and pressure inside an inflamed tooth climbs with it. There's also nothing else to think about at 2 AM. Pain that peaks after dark usually points to a nerve that's inflamed or infected, and that doesn't improve on its own.
Will I get antibiotics?
Only when an infection genuinely needs them. Antibiotics alone don't cure a toothache; they calm an infection so the tooth can be treated. If a swollen abscess needs to settle before the tooth comes out, we prescribe them and schedule a short follow-up. If the cause is a crack or deep decay without infection, antibiotics won't help and we won't hand them out.