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What Causes My Tooth Pain and How Can I Fix It?

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Jake

 

 

Tooth Pain

If you’re experiencing tooth pain, or if you have in the past, you already know how terrible it can be. You’re likely screaming, “Please fix my toothache!” Some women have even said it was worse than giving birth. Unfortunately, whatever the cause is, you’ll need to see your dentist to get it properly resolved. Here are a few of the causes of tooth pain, and what you can expect when you go in to get it checked out.

tooth Decay

This is the most common cause of tooth pain and cavities. When you eat sugar, the bacteria in your mouth digest the sugar and turn it into acid which eats away at your tooth structure. This is what your dentist refers to as tooth decay or cavities. Sometimes a cavity will only hurt a little, or not at all, depending on how deep it is. It may also just be sensitive when you eat cold things or sweets. 

To fix tooth decay, the dentist will drill out any soft part of the tooth that has been eaten by the above described acid. He will then clean the area very thoroughly and put in a filling material made of a composite resin. This will help to protect the tooth from future cavities, but be careful, because they can still work their way underneath the filling if you don’t keep your teeth clean.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Deep Cavities Causing Tooth Pain

 

If the above mentioned tooth decay progresses to the point where it reaches the pulp of your tooth, the tooth will die and you will need to get a root canal in order to resolve your tooth pain. Here’s a great video explaining the process of a root canal. The pulp is full of nerves and blood vessels, and when the decay reaches these nerves and vessels, it can cause inflammation and swelling. Since that inflammation is trapped inside your tooth, it has nowhere to release, and that is what causes the intense pain we refer to as a toothache. Gum disease and trauma to your tooth can also cause this same problem where bacteria get inside the nerve, cause inflammation, and kill the tooth.

If there is enough healthy tooth structure remaining, the dentist will do a root canal on your tooth. During a root canal, the nerve and blood vessels are removed from the inside of the tooth and replaced with a rubbery material called gutta percha. After a root canal, the tooth is no longer vital or alive, but the bacteria and infection have been removed so that the tooth can still function for you for years to come. After the root canal, a tooth will often need a crown. That’s because a dead tooth has less fluids in it and becomes more crumbly. Without a crown, that tooth may break and have to be extracted. If you do need to get your tooth extracted, you can almost always replace it with a dental implant.

 

Gum Disease

If you are a smoker, or don’t do a good consistent job of brushing and flossing your teeth, you could get periodontitis, or gum disease. Your gums become inflamed and infected and bleed very easily. It also causes really disgusting bad breath. In severe cases, the bacteria in your gums will reach all the way down to the tip of your tooth roots and cause nerve pain and inflammation as described above. One big contributor to gum disease is smoking.

To make your gums healthy again, the dentist or hygienist will do a deep cleaning, called scaling and root planing. They will get your mouth numb, and then scrape all the plaque and tartar off of your teeth below the gums, so that your gums can heal and re-attach to your tooth properly. It’s possible you’ll need antibiotics after this treatment. If your gums don’t properly resolve, you may need to get a surgery where your gums are cut back from your teeth and bone so the dentist can really get in there and make sure everything is completely clean to allow for healing.

Cracked and Broken Teeth

If you feel a more sharp pain when biting down or when chewing your food, you may have a cracked tooth. Cracked teeth can be caused by a number of different triggers, but usually have something to do with trauma from biting something hard, or from grinding and clenching the teeth. Most of the time, the crack is not visible so it can be a bit tricky for the dentist to diagnose. If you have wear patterns on your teeth from grinding, the dentist may prescribe a night guard to help prevent the likelihood of fracturing a tooth.

 

There are several different places that your tooth can break. The size and location of the fracture will determine what treatment needs to be done. A smaller crack may be resolved by simply polishing and smoothing the tooth. A larger, vertical crack extending down the root may require extraction of the tooth and an implant. If the crack is limited to the upper portion of the tooth, it can usually be resolved with a crown or root canal or combination of those treatments. Crowns are also often used as a cosmetic tool to make your smile more beautiful.

 

Impacted Wisdom tooth

 

The furthest back teeth in your mouth are called your wisdom teeth or third molars. They typically don’t emerge into your mouth until you’re around 18 years old. Some peoples erupt sooner, and some peoples never erupt. But these little buggers are the most frequent problem causers in the oral cavity. Sometimes these teeth develop in a sideways position, also known as impaction. When that happens they often bump against the tooth in front of them. If you don’t get rid of an impacted wisdom tooth, it has the potential to cause cavities in the roots of the tooth in front of it. If this happens, you’ll have to extract the wisdom tooth along with the tooth in front of it.

The treatment for impacted wisdom teeth is almost always extraction. Sometimes getting a wisdom tooth extracted requires special tools and instruments and can be very labor intensive. Your dentist may recommend general anesthesia so you can sleep during the procedure. That way you don’t have to be concerned with the pain or anxiety from getting your wisdom teeth extracted.

Tooth Pain Sucks

No matter what the cause, tooth pain is a serious bummer. It can keep you up at night and stop you from being able to enjoy your food. Whatever the cause may be, it’s important to get into the dental office so they can get you out of pain as soon as humanly possible. At The Weekend Dentist, we specialize in getting people out of pain, especially on the weekends when no other dental office is open to help out. Give us a call today and we’ll take care of whatever tooth problem you have going on!

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