No one wants to bite into a favorite food, sip a favorite drink, or take a big breath of cool air only to discover that unpleasant nip of a toothache. While cavities might be the leading and most commonly considered cause of a toothache, it’s certainly not the only one. Finding the best dentist is your best course of action to put a stop to toothaches and protect against future ones.
Teeth grinding, also known as bruxism, is incredibly common throughout Logan, Utah and the most astonishing part is that most don’t even realize they’re doing it. In many instances, bruxism occurs during sleep, although some patients will unknowingly grind teeth during the day as well. It’s estimated that as many as 30% of adults regularly grind their teeth whether they are aware or not.
Bruxism causes toothaches by gradually wearing away the enamel on the teeth over time. As this enamel erodes, the sensitive dentin layer of the teeth is exposed, which then leads to heightened tooth sensitivity. Additionally, the motion involved in grinding may lead to jaw pain on top of tooth pain as well.
While tooth abscesses are most often seen with severe cavities, they’re not necessarily required. An abscess can occur in the bone surrounding a tooth, at the tip of your tooth root, or in your gums. An abscess is a pocket of infection that may be caused by decay, fracture, or by any sort of bacteria infiltrating the tooth or surrounding gums.
Tooth abscesses can be extremely painful, with pain radiating away from the mouth and toward the jaw, neck, or ears. These need to be treated by the best dentist you can find as infection spread can lead to much more severe issues.
Sometimes what appears to be a toothache isn’t actually coming from the teeth at all. In some instances, a patient may try to call up the best dentist they can find for what they believe is a severe multi-tooth ache. If the patient deals with allergies, sinusitis, or other sinus-related issues, their dentist may find little in regard to problems with their oral health. In these instances, sinus pressure builds to put pressure on the upper teeth, leading to a “toothache” that isn’t really a toothache at all.
However, whenever a toothache is present, it should still be assessed by the best dentist possible – even if the patient is prone to sinus pressure.
