A risk of medical emergency accompanies every dental procedure, but little is known of general dental practitioners' readiness for such events. The few previous studies have shown that nearly all dentists have received training in medical emergencies at some time, most of this training being postgraduate. Up to 20 percent of dentists have reported feeling inadequately prepared for medical emergencies, and most are receptive to the idea of receiving further medical emergency-related training. We conducted a postal survey of 314 dentists concerning their readiness for, and experience of, medical emergencies within general dental practice; 199 dentists (63.4 percent) responded. Medical emergencies had occurred in 129 practices (65.2 percent) within the previous 10 years, at a mean rate of 2.0 events per 10,000 patients treated under local analgesia, other forms of pain control, or sedation. Vaso-vagal events had occurred in 121 (61.1 percent) practices within the previous year, the mean rate being 6.9 events per 10,000 patients treated using the same modes. More than half the respondents were dissatisfied with the training they had received for medical emergencies as undergraduate students, and 28 (14.1 percent) currently felt inadequately prepared for an emergency in practice. When asked how their preparedness could be improved, 165 (83.3 percent) opted for hands-on courses, 15 (7.5 percent) opted for lectures alone, and 5 (2.5 percent) opted for other courses alone. One in 20 felt no need for further training. Further training in the management of medical emergencies should be made available to New Zealand's dentists.