Symptoms of Common Dental Problems

Often, when we feel something sensitive or painful in our mouth, we tend to panic. I mean, we all want to keep our teeth, right? Some symptoms may be able to wait until your next dental visit. Others may require a limited exam between your professional dental cleanings to get the problem addressed right away. At Dental Reflections Dublin, we are all about preventive dental care, so the sooner an issue is addressed, the less invasive a procedure recommendation would be.

Temperature Sensitive Teeth

This is one of the most common common dental problems we hear from our patients, temperature sensitivity. When you can’t eat your favorite ice cream or drink your favorite ice-cold drinks, you start to get annoyed. This is typically caused by some type of enamel wear or root exposure. The enamel, or the most outer layer of your tooth, is what protects it from acid in our diets and normal wear and tear. When the enamel suffers too much trauma, like sipping soda all day, or clenching and grinding, it’s inevitable – it starts to wear away or develop a hole or cavity from the harmful bacteria of the byproduct of the soda or snacks you eat all day.

Enter: temperature sensitivity. The underlying layer of the enamel is dentin. Dentin contains tons of tubules that lead to the nerve and causes sensitivity. The only way to help this is to use a toothpaste with potassium nitrate. This ingredient helps fill in and block the tubules from sending information to the nerve. If it’s a cavity, the only solution is for us to remove it and put a filling in its place. If gum recession is causing the sensitivity, toothpaste can also help. However, we need to determine the cause of the gum recession and come up with a solution. This usually means a nightguard recommendation to prevent the recession from progressing any further.

Toothache

If you are experiencing one of the common dental problems, a toothache, like an actual ache that will not go away, its best to get in for an exam. What typically happens is there is something underlying causing this pain. Once a tooth starts to hurt constantly, there is a good chance. There is a large cavity in the tooth that has reached the nerve. The result of this is usually a root canal or extraction of the tooth that is needed, depending on the severity of it.

We will determine the cause of the problem by taking a limited x-ray of the problem area to see if there is pathology at the tip of the root of the tooth. We also use an x-ray to see how far progressed a cavity is in the crown of the tooth if that is indeed what is going on. Another sign is a recurring bump on the gum near the tooth. This is a sign of an infection that usually comes with pain and cannot be cured without a root canal or extraction.

Pain with Chewing or Biting

Our last common dental problem patients experience is pain with biting or chewing. While this can mean a fractured tooth, it is more common to occur after a dental procedure. When a tooth is drilled on, and a cavity is removed, it is experiencing trauma. Therefore, it will take time to heal. If it is not resolving and it truly gives you a “zing” every time you bite down, your bite may be a little high. This means after putting a filling in the tooth to replace the cavity that was taken out. The filling may not be completely even with your bite. This is very common since you are numb during the procedure. Thankfully, it is a quick fix and involves a follow-up appointment to even out the filling, and chances are, the zing will resolve. If it does not, it requires further attention.

If you are experiencing any of these symptoms you are concerned about, do not hesitate to call us at Dental Reflections Dublin to come in for a limited exam so we can get you feeling better. 614.799.5576