Toothache & Sore Jaw

Toothache 


I used to have a toothache but now it’s gone – is that OK?
 If you have had a toothache in the past but it seems okay now, it could be because you have the first stages of decay and the nerve of the tooth has retracted 
slightly to compensate. This is especially so if the original pain lasted only a couple of seconds whilst eating or drinking cold food. 
The problem though, left untreated the worse the problem can become.

In any case, it’s best to have it checked out early so as to stop any future pain and minimise the cost of getting your tooth fixed.

Cracked Tooth


When you bite down, you feel a sharp pain. It quickly disappears, and perhaps you ignore it. You avoid certain foods or chew only on one side of your mouth. 
Does this sound familiar? If so, you may have a cracked or broken tooth.

What causes a tooth to crack?
• Exposure of tooth enamel to temperature extremes such as eating hot food and then drinking ice water
• Loss of a significant portion of tooth structure through wear, large fillings or other restorations
• Brittleness of teeth that have undergone endodontic (root canal) treatment
• Chewing on hard objects or foods such as ice, nuts, or hard lollies
• An accident such as a blow to the mouth
• Uneven chewing pressure
• Stress on a tooth

How can you tell if a tooth is cracked?
It could be difficult. You may not even be able to tell which tooth hurts or whether the pain is from an upper or lower tooth. A crack may 
appear as a hairline fracture, running vertically along the tooth. It often is invisible to the eye and may not show even on an x-ray.
You can help our Dentists determine which tooth is causing the problem by noting when and where you have the sensitivity to heat 
or cold and to sweet, sour or sticky food as well as approximately where the pain is when you are chewing.

Why does a cracked tooth hurt?
A cracked tooth may hurt because the pressure of biting causes the crack to open. When you stop biting, the pressure is released
and a sharp pain results as the crack quickly closes.
Even though the crack may be microscopic, when it opens, the pulp inside the tooth may become irritated. The pulp is a soft tissue that contains 
the tooth’s nerves and blood vessels. If the crack irritates the pulp, the tooth may become sensitive to temperature extremes.
 If the pulp becomes damaged or diseased as a result of the crack, root canal treatment may be necessary to save the tooth.

How is a cracked tooth treated?
Depending on the size and location of the crack, treatment may vary from bonding to root canal treatment. A severely cracked tooth 
may need extraction. Your Dentists will determine the best treatment for you.

Wisdom Tooth Pain  


Our third molar teeth or wisdom teeth, as they are commonly known, usually erupt between the ages of 16 and 26 years of age. 
 Very few people actually have enough room for their wisdom teeth to come through.

One of the main problems concerning wisdom teeth is that they can become impacted – that is they only partially erupt or they get 
trapped or stuck in the jaw.  Over time impacted wisdom teeth can actually cause lots of problems by damaging, even destroying, adjacent teeth 
causing infections in the gums and or jaw bone forming cysts, causing headaches and other facial pain. Usually these systems don’t appear until
 middle age  but by then the problems have already developed.

Your dentists will be able to assess through an x-ray or OPG whether your wisdom teeth have become impacted or not. 
If required the best time  to have them removed is in your late teens. This is because it is generally an easier procedure, as the roots 
have not fully developed yet.  At Eversmile we understand that Patient’s can get nervous about having their wisdom teeth removed,
 therefore we provide General Anesthetic at the SJOG Hospital and Nitrous Oxide (happy Gas) 
for those who wish to have the treatment
 completed in the Dentist chair.

Jaw Pain and Discomfort


If you suffer from sore or painful jaw joints or jaw and face muscle pain, clicking or grinding noises during normal movement of your jaw, or you experience
 headaches or earaches, you may have TMD. (Temporomandibular Joint Disorders)
 TMD are a family of problems related to either one or both of your complex jaw joints. The lower jaw (mandible), is held
 in place by numerous muscle groups and ligaments, which allows us to move the lower jaw forward and sideways so that we can talk, chew, swallow 
and yawn. These are all normal movements, which should occur without discomfort and limitation.

60% of the population experience TMD at some stage of their life. Signs and symptoms often first appear when people are in their in their 20’s. 
There are numerous causes of TMD and the effects of many of them can be corrected or minimized using dentistry based treatment options.


Muscle relaxant injections

  A number of people who suffer from jaw clenching and teeth grinding (Bruxism) will benefit
 from this therapy. By relaxing the overactive muscles that controls the jaws, we often see a reduction in symptoms from 
the head to the neck areas, as well as a reduction in jaw joint (TMJ) pain resulting in fewer cases of fracturing teeth and fillings.

If you have any pain in the jaw and not in the neck, come in and see us and we will advise you of the best option that is suitable for you.


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