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Pharmacist over the counter (OTC)
recommendation.
Pharmacist recommendation
for common child symptoms.
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The goal of this recommendation is to see what you can use over the counter for a toothache until your child can see a dentist.
You should try these in the order listed.
Place 2 to 3 teaspoonful of table salt in a glass of warm water your child can tolerate.
Have him or her swiss and spit as a mouth wash for about 30 seconds as needed.
NonSteroidal Anti-inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDs) will be useful for the inflammation, pain and swelling.
If your child can't take NSAIDs, acetaminophen would be a good second choice.
But don't give acetaminophen as a first choice. It is not very good with the inflammatory pain associated with a toothache.
Use a Q-tip to apply clove oil to the toothache.
Place a little folded gauze pad to prevent it from being washed away for maximum effect.
Can't find clove oil?
Look for preparations in the dental aisle containing eugenol. (Red Cross Toothache®, DenTek®).
This is the pain relieving ingredient in clove oil.
If clove oil (eugenol) is not your child's thing, then go with benzocaine.
Preparations containing 20% benzocaine will help numb the toothache pain for a few hours.
Know that the numbing agent will eventually wash away.
How long depends on the amount of saliva being produced. So make sure you combine this with something like ibuprofen for your child.
Average relief time is 4 hours.
Remember, it is clove oil (eugenol) or 20% benzocaine. Not both.
If swollen and very painful, press an ice pack against the child's cheek closest to the toothache for about 5 to 10 minutes 3 to 4 times a day to alleviate the pain.
Massaging the web of the hand between the thumb and index finger on the same side of the body with the toothache pain with ice has been found to produce up to a 50% reduction in acute dental pain [ R. Melzack et ].
Last updated by pharmacist on : 02/16/2016
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