What makes your tooth pain so bad?
What makes your tooth pain so bad?
Toothache…. it’s one of the worst kinds of pain known to mankind. This is added with the fact that it generally occurs at night when you lay down (there is a very valid reason for it), just worsens the problem. Big question: which dentist is available at that hour? Let’s assume you reached a dentist, what do they do “Take a painkiller and come over tomorrow”. And the same cycle begins… take painkillers, go to the clinic, get more medicines and painkillers, go back home, come to the clinic after the course ends and get the treatment done… Seems familiar and exhaustive? Well it’s time to break this cycle…...
Welcome to the future…… WAIT…. It’s scary to step into the unknown, so let’s first understand why does this happen. Let’s start with….
What causes toothache?
There are multiple causes of toothache including stress, nerve diseases, some growths in the underlying bone etc. and covering all of them is beyond the scope of one article. The most common cause of toothache is infection. The rule with tooth infection is that no dental treatment can start till there’s an active infection, so essentially you travel to the clinic just to get a prescription.
How is the tooth infected?
Tooth cavities are the second most common disease on the planet. The cause of cavities is bacteria. The tooth is made up of multiple layers and the bacteria gradually invade and dissolve these layers to get inside the tooth, causing pain during the process. Starting with the outermost layer called the enamel, the infection of which is generally asymptomatic other than a black spot, the bacteria invade deeper into the dentine followed by the pulp and out of the tooth into the surrounding bone. Thus, infecting the entire tooth and then proceeding to infect the surrounding bone and the muscles, if the spread of infection isn’t stopped.
Why does tooth pain increase while lying down?
The tooth is a closed space that is surrounded by rigid calcified walls. As the bacteria enter and invade the tooth they cause swelling of the soft structure in the tooth known as the pulp. Even though this structure swells, it cannot expand beyond a point as it is restricted by the rigid walls, causing the pain. This pain is increased while lying down due to the increase in the flow of the blood in the head and neck region while lying down. So, the swollen tissue with an increased pressure inside a closed cavity while lying down is the reason for the pain at night when you prepare to sleep.
What is the treatment?
The treatment of toothache depends on multiple factors, including the severity of the pain and what triggers it. Tooth pain might not only be due to infection but has multiple other reasons including gum diseases, stress related factors, nervous disorders and in a few rare cases even a minor heart attack can present as toothache.
It is important to understand the underlying cause of tooth pain and not self-medicate.
Why can’t the dental treatment start immediately?
Although some doctors might recommend it, it isn’t advisable to start the treatment during tooth pain because
- It is important to specify the underlying reason of what is causing the pain
- In case of infection it would be very painful to undertake any treatment even under anaesthesia as it’s pain killing action isn’t effective in infected environment.
- Undertaking a process with infection without any medication could also result in spread of the infection to other areas in the body, including heart
- Assuming that the toothache is due to infection and undertaking a dental procedure under those lines has been life threatening in certain scenario With this understanding, let’s take the step into the new way of managing tooth pain.
DentOp.in. Login and find out for yourself, how we take into consideration all these factors and help you manage one of the most painful conditions at your comfort when a dentist isn’t available due to time or geographic limitations.
