Is My Toothache Serious?

A toothache is often a sign that something is seriously wrong with your tooth, but not always. Sometimes, a minor event can cause your toothache, but it’s very hard to tell the difference yourself.

Many Things Can Cause a Toothache

When you have tooth pain, it’s because the tooth nerves are experiencing adverse stimuli, which can be caused by many things. The nerves in your tooth are contained inside the pulp in the tooth, which is encased in dentin, then in enamel or cementum. This rigid casing generally protects the nerves, but it can also be a cause of problems.

Think about it: if you scratch or bump your skin, what’s your body’s first response? Inflammation. You’ll develop a little red bump or lump. When inflammation occurs in your tooth pulp, there’s nowhere to expand, so pressure increases, which causes pain.

When it comes to your teeth, there are many equivalents to minor bumps and scrapes, such as:

• Biting pressure
• Pressure or vibration from dental treatment
• A blow to the teeth
• Tooth decay
• Dehydration
• Teeth whitening
• Foods
• Toothpaste

For some of these causes, it’s easy to track them down. Other times, it can be a little harder. If you start to notice that certain foods or new toothpaste seem to be causing you discomfort, it’s important that you avoid them until you talk to a dentist.

If at-home teeth whitening is causing you problems, discontinue it and talk to a dentist about teeth whitening solutions like KöR Deep Bleaching, which is designed to give maximum whitening with minimum sensitivity.

A Serious Toothache?

Most people assume that a toothache is only serious if the level of pain is great. This is often true, but not always. Spontaneous severe pain, lasting pain, and sensitivity to both hot and cold foods and beverages are often signs that your toothache is the result of an infected tooth that requires a root canal (endodontic treatment), but the level of pain patients experience varies greatly among individuals. Other signs of a serious toothache to watch out for are: swollen lymph nodes, pain in other areas of the body that coincides with tooth pain, bad breath, swollen gums, and a discolored tooth.

But if you have a toothache, it’s best not to try to diagnose it at home. Instead, let a dentist evaluate your tooth and put your mind at ease–not to mention give you solutions to prevent it from recurring.

For help with a checkup for your toothache, please call (310) 275-5325 for an appointment with a Beverly Hills dentist at Nicolas A. Ravon, DDS, MSD.

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