When Does Your Filling Hurt?

It’s important to know exactly what sort of pain you are experiencing. This will help distinguish between common filling pain and more seriously dental procedure complications. Tooth pain and sensitivity normally associated with a filling includes sensitivity to:

• Cold and hot
• Pressure
• Sweet foods

Normally, tooth sensitivity after filling fluctuates depending on the circumstance. For the above circumstances, your pain should decrease over time until your filling no longer bothers you. Constant pain is a sign of trouble, though. You may have a more serious problem, such as a secondary infection, if you experience red-hot swelling, puss, fever, or stinging of the cavity sight. If this happens, go to your dentist or to the emergency room immediately before the infection progresses.

The Two Types of Filling Pain

When the anesthesia wears off, you may begin to feel a more serious form of tooth sensitivity. The following two types of tooth pain are reasons to go see your dentist, because each is due to a problem during the filling process. The first type of pain occurs when your filling is higher than your bite. Each time you bite down, your top teeth apply pressure to the new filling, causing pain in your tooth. For this type of tooth pain, simply go back to your dentist to get the filling reshaped.
Another type of tooth pain is a sharp shock that occurs whenever the tooth is touched. This occurs because two different metals in your mouth produce an electric shock when they combine together. Often, this is due to an amalgam filling meeting with a gold filling. If this becomes a painful problem, go to your dentist to receive a different style of filling.

Fillings that Need Replaced

One last source of tooth pain is a filling that has simply been in your tooth for too long. Fillings are not meant to last forever and must be replaced when they become worn or loose. Sometimes, a filling will fall out completely, requiring immediate dental attention. Other times, a filling will become cracked, allowing bacteria to grow. This results in decay and even a secondary cavity in a tooth that has already been filled. So, if you’ve had a filling for a long time and have just begun to experience pain, you may need to seek out a dentist who can check the filling’s strength.

Tooth Pain and Aches

As you can see, there are many different reasons that you may be experiences tooth sensitivity after filling a cavity. Most people experience some minor sensitivity right after a cavity has been filled. If you experience shooting or deep, aching pain, see a dentist to get your filling reshaped. If you notice pain in a filling that you’ve had for a while, have a dentist check the filling.

Why a Root Canal?

You’ve noticed pain in your lower gums for a while now, and the doctor just came back with the sobering news. You’re going to need a root canal, because your tooth has decayed as far as becoming “dead.” Most root canal procedures occur when a tooth has become cracked, or a deep cavity has damaged the structural integrity of the tooth. As bacteria builds up in the fragile pulp of the teeth, your tooth slowly begins to “die,” or rot out from the inside out. So the next steps are logical: either get a root canal or pull the tooth. As many don’t want a gaping hole in their mouth, a root canal becomes the only option.

Why Not to Avoid a Root Canal

There’s a common misconception that a root canal is the most painful thing that has ever happened in the dentist’s office. This is not true. A root canal can be as painless as getting a tooth extracted or even filling a cavity. Improperly done, a root canal can become painful, but that’s why it’s important to get the procedure done by a reputable dentist. So, why should you not avoid a root canal? If you think some drilling is painful, imagine what it will be like when your tooth slowly rots away in your mouth. In comparison, getting a root canal is like getting a sliver removed. So, if you want to avoid a root canal, look forward to years of excruciating tooth pain whenever you bite down or sip on an icy drink.

Avoiding Pain the Right Way

There are better ways of avoiding root canal pain than to never see a dentist. The first tip is to get your root canal done by a good, experienced dentist. Talk to patients who have been treated by a dentist that you’re interested in. Often, you can get a good idea of how the dentist works and his “bedside manner.” During the root canal, feel free to communicate with your dentist. If something hurts beyond belief, tell your oral surgeon. They don’t want to see you suffer, and will do all they can to make the root canal as pain free as possible. Understand, though, that you will experience some discomfort. This should be more of an annoyance than painful, though.

The Truth about Root Canals

In reality, root canal pain isn’t something to avoid the procedure because of. Getting a root canal is like getting a tooth pulled or a cavity filled. The consequences of not getting the dental work will be much more serious indeed as the tooth slowly rots away in your mouth over months of painful chewing and sensitivity.

A root canal is not the most painful thing that you’ll have to endure during your life. In fact, most root canals result in less pain than the patient is already feeling. The reason to get a root canal is because the pulp of the teeth has been infected and is dying. During a root canal, your nerves are numbed just like they are numbed during a filling or extraction. Thus, a root canal is no more painful than these procedures. The American Associated of Endodontists suggests that the fear of root canals is due to how painful this procedure was in the past when modern medicine was not being used. These days, root canals are more annoyingly uncomfortable than painful.

Myth Two: I’ll be Fine without a Root Canal

Avoiding a root canal is not a way to avoid the pain! The need for a root canal arises because the pulp of your teeth has become infected. The pain of your teeth rotting from the inside out is far more serious than having a root canal done with analgesia. You can also suffer from serious infections if a dying tooth is left on its own for too long. Therefore, get a root canal before the rotting tooth becomes a problem. The pain you will be avoiding in the long run should be the only reason you need.

Myth Three: Root Canals Take Several Appointments

Many years ago, it was standard for root canals to take several appointments. These days, a root canal can usually be completed in one dentist visit. Sometimes, an extensive root infection will take two appointments to fix, but these instances are rare. You may need two appointments if your infection is so far gone that a dentist needs extensive time to repair the tooth. This is why seeing a doctor for a root canal sooner rather than later is important. Often, a dentist will suggest a root canal even if you aren’t feeling pain. For these low-key infections, your procedure should take only one appointment.

Myth Four: Your Teeth Will Break After a Root Canal

One hundred years ago, it wasn’t uncommon for a tooth to break after a root canal. This was due to the fact that these teeth weren’t getting the blood and nutrients they need. These days, many dentists crown teeth who have had root canal infections to prevent breakage.

Busting the Myths of Root Canals

When you think of getting a root canal, don’t automatically assume that it will be the most excruciating experience of your life. Instead, understand that root canal misconceptions arise from how the procedure was done over one hundred years ago. In those days, a root canal was painful. These days, modern medicine eases the pain and your worry. So, does a root canal hurt? Not nearly as much as you may think.

Over the Counter Pain Medication

The first place to turn to when a doctor isn’t in is over the counter pain medications that will help reduce swelling and combat pain. Acetaminophen (Tylenol), ibuprofen (Advil), and naproxen (Aleve) are all good temporary pain relievers that can get you through the weekend. As always, take these as directed on the package to avoid overdose and other complications. When you finally do see your doctor for your tooth pain, make sure to tell him what medication you chose to take. For children who have toothaches, do not administer aspirin. Instead, use acetaminophen.

Stay Neutral

“Staying neutral” means staying away from extremely hot or cold foods. Rapid temperature change can cause the tooth pain to increase dramatically. Instead, stay with foods that are lukewarm or slightly cool instead. Don’t drink iced or chilled beverages and wait until food has cooled before eating. Staying neutral also means choose soft foods over hard ones that may be hard to chew. If your pain is due to a cavity, loose filling or crown, crunchy or firm foods could cause irreversible damage. If your toothache is due to jaw pain, though, feel free to use a warm compress to soothe the damaged jaw. Make sure, though, to only apply a compress for 15 minute intervals to prevent nerve and muscle damage. If jaw pain occurs frequently, you may be a sufferer of TMJ.

Turn to a Natural Cure

Surprisingly, there are many herbal methods that can relieve the pain of a toothache. The essential oils used for this type of pain relief are also easily found at most drug or natural food stores. If you choose, relief can be obtained by gently biting on a cotton ball or pad soaked in clove oil. Clove acts as a natural numbing agent and antibacterial, making it perfect for tooth aches. Peppermint and cinnamon oil may provide a tingling sensation that will detract from the pain. But know that concentrated oils will be harmful to some people who are sensitive to herbs. If you don’t know if you are sensitive or not, try rubbing the oil you choose to use on a small patch of skin before putting the oil in your mouth.

Toothache Relief at Home

Even though you may not be able to see a doctor right away, there are still things you can do in the meantime for temporary toothache pain relief. First, try an over the counter pain medication the reduce pain and swelling. Avoid food that is too hot, cold, or hard, as these items could make the pain or condition worse. Finally, consider turning to an herbal remedy to reduce the pain.

What Price Can I Expect?

A root canal will generally cost anywhere from $800 to $1000 per tooth. The price, of course, depends highly on the severity of the root infection and the difficulty of the tooth being worked on. Back teeth generally cost more being they contain more roots and are harder to work on. If your root canal will be preformed on a front tooth, you can expect your cost to be less.

Why So Expensive?

Root canals are expensive because of the time, expertise, and equipment needed to perform one. Even though everyone thinks that dentists are only paying for their vacations by charging so much, this is very far from the truth. A root canal’s costs come down to the number of people and price of equipment it requires. For each root canal, you need an experienced dentist to perform the actual drilling. In turn, that dentist needs an assistant, as well as a licensed anesthesiologist to administer your sedatives. As far as the needed equipment goes, root canal tools are not cheap. In order to complete a root canal, your dentist needs a number of files and diamond drills.

Will Insurance Pay?

Fortunately, root canals are covered by most insurance companies, but you’ll need to read your coverage to make sure this procedure is covered in your plan. Most of the time, an insurance company will pay for 50% to 80% of the overall cost. This means, though, that you’ll have to pay out of pocket for part of this expensive procedure.

Root Canal Alternatives

If you can’t pay for a root canal due to poor coverage or no insurance, understand that there are some other options to take care of your infected tooth. The most popular alternative includes pulling the tooth and then replacing it with a crown, bridge, or implant. In the long run, this option can become more expensive, though, with multiple dentist visits and replacement tooth costs. It is an option, though, if you only have enough money to fix your root canal problem one step at a time. For example, you can get your tooth removed, and then have the gap filled later when you have the money.

The Cost of a Root Canal

A root canal is an expensive procedure, but not because your doctor is simply funding his Hawaii vacation. Root canals take a number of expensive tools to complete, as well as the expertise of a number of different trained professionals. Normally, insurance will pay for about half of a root canal. Understand that if you’re having a hard time coming up with financing, you can opt to have the tooth removed instead. This way, you can work back to a complete smile in steps.

The most common type of pain a dental patient experiences after an appointment and treatment is sensitivity based in nature. In other words, the pain might not be constant or consistent, but comes every time a person eats ice cream, drinks ice water, or chews on steak and other tough meats directly with that repaired tooth. This pain is pretty normal for patients who have just had dental work done, and because of that you shouldn’t be surprised if you experience basic tooth pain after getting some filling work done. This sensitivity should definitely go away with time and if you don’t see any difference after one or two weeks then you need to visit a dentist again in order to get the problem fixed.

If the issue isn’t sensitivity pain, but is a sharp shooting pain or a constant dull throbbing, that’s an entirely different problem and one that needs to be handled carefully. Both sharp pains and throbbing pain can often indicate that the fillings were not properly set, or there’s an allergic reaction to the material being used. In this case there’s no argument that you need to go back to the dentist to make sure that the fillings are properly set, or see if the result is an allergic reaction that will mean necessitating pulling out the offending materials and replacing them with something that won’t cause a painful allergic reaction.

These are the types of pain after fillings which can appear, and with both of them one of the keys is to consider duration. It’s pretty normal for teeth to be sensitive, sore, or to have some pain for around a week or sometimes even two afterwards – but the pain should fade over time and get better. If it doesn’t, then there are issues that need to be dealt with not only for your pain but also for your overall health. Allergic reactions in the mouth are never a good thing, and there is enough pain and difficulty in life without having to constantly deal with tooth pain in your mouth.

The Basic Costs

Getting a tooth removed via extraction will generally cost around $100 to $150 for a simple tooth. Things get more complicated, though, as the situation progresses. Take a look at the following costs for various types to tooth extractions to see what your procedure will cost you.

- Simple tooth: If a tooth is completely intact and fairly easy to get to, you will most likely pay around $100 to $150 to get the tooth removed. Generally, this type of extraction is preformed on children and adults when a dentist is constructing the best smile possible by removing problem teeth.

- Surgical removal: This type of extraction occurs when the tooth is not completely intact, is half erupted, impacted, or deformed. For broken teeth, you can expect to pay up to $300. For impaction and other complications, expect to pay anywhere form $300 to $600.

- Wisdom tooth: Removing wisdom teeth is often the most expensive tooth removal out there. Normally, wisdom teeth cost around $200 to $300 per tooth to remove.

What Will Insurance Cover?

Insurance will generally cover 70% to 80% of the total dental procedure cost for a tooth extraction. Understand, though, that there are some added costs that an insurance plan may not cover. X-rays are commonly excluded from dental plans, ranging around $75 per scan. Sedation, a good option for children and the squeamish, is also not covered by most basic plans. Sedation is also one of the more expensive aspects of tooth removal, costing anywhere from $200 to $400. Remember to consider consultation and follow up visits. All in all, be prepared to spend over $1000 on a tooth extraction, not all of which will be covered by the insurance company.

How to Minimize the Price Tag

You can help reduce the costs of your tooth extraction by being smart about where you spend your money. First, consider doing all of your dental work in one visit. If you have cavities and also need a tooth pulled, talk to your dentist about doing it all at once. Often, lumping visits will save you money because the doctor doesn’t have to book you for multiple appointments. Another way to save money is to skip consultation and X-rays if you already have them from another doctor. If you switch dentists, have them send your paperwork and X-rays to the new office.

The Cost of Tooth Extraction

All in all, tooth extraction cost is much less than most other dental procedures. Be aware, though, that there’s more to an extraction than just getting the tooth pulled. X-rays, consultations, and follow up visits will all add to your final price. Save money, though, by lumping your dental work all into one visit.

Clove Oil

Clove oil is one of the most popular methods to getting rid of an aching tooth. For this remedy, soak a cotton ball in clove oil until it is saturated. Then, gently compress this cotton ball on your aching tooth. Luckily, clove oil is easily found at many drug stores, but keeping a backup supply of the oil of clove is never a bad idea.

Garlic

Use garlic to get rid of an aching tooth. Garlic’s antibacterial properties help kill the germs that are causing your teeth to ache. Understand, though, the different between a toothache and aching gums. Each requires a different approach for relief.

Wheat Grass

A juice or rinse made of wheat grass is an excellent way to prevent cavities before they turn into a constantly aching tooth. The reason is due to wheat grass’ unique property that draws bacteria out of the gums and teeth. To use this home remedy, make a juice out of wheat grass and rinse once a day. You can also consider adding wheat grass puree to your beverages.

Asafetida

This root extract from a variety of different plants provides instant toothache relief. This root resin is extremely bitter and smells bad, so don’t put this in your mouth if you’re of the faint of heart. Find asafetida at natural food stores or online. This extract is also spelled “asafetida” in case you have a hard time finding it near you.

Salt Rinse

Rinsing with salt water will help cure the bacteria that may be inflaming the base of the tooth, causing your toothache. Although this won’t get rid of the infection permanently, using salt as a rinse will help temporarily relieve pain. If you have a cavity already, you’ll need to see a dentist to get rid if it for good.

Alcohol

To kill bacteria and numb the gums, use a cotton ball soaked in brandy to cure your toothache. To numb the gums most effectively, hold a swig of whisky in your mouth over the affected area. This will help relieve some of the pain of your aching tooth, and might make you feel a little better in the mean time.

Onion

Onion is a surprising cure for a toothache, but not an option for those who aren’t willing to stick whole onion slices in their mouths. This works equally well killing bacteria and temporarily stopping a tooth infection.

Offbeat Cures for an Aching Tooth

For some interesting ways to cure a toothache at home, turn to these wacky toothache remedies. These cures have been known to help ward off tooth pain, but understand that the only way to avoid toothaches is to avoid cavities. Only proper brushing and flossing will keep you cavity free.

Usually when there is a cavity between teeth, it’s not the side of both teeth that is infected, but actually one tooth with the cavity that is just on the side instead of on the front, back, or top where it would be easier to spot and where dental care would have been easier in the beginning. Because of this, it’s not uncommon for a cavity that starts on the side of the tooth to grow much larger than the ones which are easier to spot or notice.

The severity of the cavity will determine what kind of treatment is needed, and if immediate treatment is the best option. Depending on the location, the size of the cavity, the type of cavity, and the strength or health or the surrounding teeth, the dentist’s ideal action will make a big difference. Although it might sound strange, depending on the cavity and those other surrounding factors, a dentist might choose to tell the patient to keep up the oral hygiene, but to wait a little bit if the damage to healthy teeth and gums in getting to the cavity outweighs the benefit of going in for the repair at that time. This isn’t the most common scenario, but it is common enough to be aware of it.

Getting to these cavities can be quite tricky, in large part because if you can’t get to the damaged area from the back, front, or side then the options are severely limited. The dentist will by far and away have the knowledge to give you the best advice for how to deal with any between the teeth cavities that you have. At home, there’s only so much you can do. Continue to keep your mouth as clean as possible through regular and thorough brushing as well as the use of mouthwash. Flossing is still suggested, especially if the cavity hasn’t become surface tooth decay yet, otherwise you need to be very careful when doing anything in the infected area.

The key is to go to the dentist and get that professional advice on what to do or how to go about treatment. If the cavity can be fixed then and there in the office, that makes things a lot easier and the course of action should be obvious. If this isn’t an option, then you need to follow whatever professional advice you receive to the letter, and avoid the type of cold foods and sweets which could cause sensitivity or pain in the meantime.

Why So Sensitive?

Tooth sensitivity to cold is usually a sign of inflamed pulp of the tooth. There are many different reasons the pulp of your tooth can become inflamed too. Most often, decay is the cause for cold sensitivity. This is not always the case, though. Take a look at the following issues that can cause sensitivity to cool items:

- Deep Decay: A deep cavity is the number one cause for sensitivity to cold. This is not a simple fix, though. If left untreated, a deep cavity will result in the need for extraction or root canal work. Save your teeth and see a dentist early.

- Fillings, Crowns, or Orthodontia: Recent fillings or crowns can cause sensitivity to cold. This is because the tooth has undergone recent trauma and is swelling in an attempt to repair itself. In these cases, sensitivity should go away once the tooth has a chance to repair and settle. If the sensitivity gets worse over time, you may need to see a dentist immediately, as this is a warning sign of a more serious problem.

- Exposed Roots: If a root is exposed due to the receding of gums or recent dental issues, you could begin to be sensitive to cold. In these cases, teeth are also frequently sensitive to air and the evaporation of saliva.

- Tooth strain: If you’ve recently had an accident involving knocking one of your teeth, your sensitivity to cold could be heightened. This should go away soon, once your tooth has healed.

What Can You Do?

Depending on the circumstance, there are a variety of different ways to treat a tooth sensitive to cold. If the cause is due to a cavity or deep root decay, you’ll need to see a dentist immediately before the problem gets any worse. If you can’t decipher what’s causing your pain, though, take some efforts to minimize the hurt until a doctor can diagnose your problem. Often, placing a small round of dental wax over the tooth will prevent cold from becoming a problem. Next, find out exactly what sort of stimuli bothers your tooth. This evidence may help you and your doctor find out what’s wrong.

A Tooth Sensitive to Cold

When you’re suffering from a tooth sensitive to cold, the first step is to find out what’s causing your dental pain. From recent dental work to an exposed root, there are many causes of this uncomfortable ailment. But after determining what’s causing your pain, addressing the issue permanently is the only way to keep your sensitivity from coming back.