Routine maintenance, like visiting your dentist for routine checkups and implementing a twice-daily at-home dental hygiene routine, can strengthen your smile. This helps prevent common problems, such as cavities and gum disease, but it’s still possible to develop an emergency, like a sudden toothache.
You might think it’s okay to wait to get help, but oral issues usually get progressively worse, not better. If you ignore it, your condition can contribute to more serious concerns and might even become fatal! Continue reading to learn why you should call your dentist right away if you experience severe or persistent pain.
What Causes Toothaches?
There are several potential reasons you might feel tenderness in your teeth, and not all of them are considered urgent. For example, if you’ve recently undergone teeth whitening or tend to brush your teeth overly aggressively, you could develop sensitivity, especially to overly hot or cold temperatures.
However, deeper throbbing or a sharp pain when biting down is often due to a deeper underlying problem, like decay, disease, or an injury. Unfortunately, bacteria are more likely to penetrate damaged enamel, allowing them to infect the pulp inside. This triggers aching and swelling in the tender nerves in your tooth, which require professional intervention to address.
Can Dental Infections be Fatal?
Although it might start out small, contamination from your tooth can spread to your gum tissues and enter your bloodstream if it goes untreated for too long. From there, it can be carried to other areas of your body and contribute to other serious health concerns.
For example, the infectious germs are liable to find their way to your lungs and cause respiratory issues and illnesses. You might even develop potentially fatal conditions, such as Ludwig’s Angina, which causes swelling in the chest and throat that makes it difficult to swallow or breathe, or meningitis, a potentially deadly inflammation of the membranes covering your brain and spinal cord.
How Are Tooth Infections Treated?
Your dentist will examine your mouth and may take X-rays or other images and scans to determine the full extent of the damage to your tooth. Then, depending on their findings, they will provide an appropriate treatment plan.
In many cases, a root canal procedure can address the infection and sanitize the diseased tooth. This is usually followed by placing a customized dental crown to restore its appearance and functionality. However, if your pearly white is too damaged to be saved, they might have no recourse but to recommend extracting and replacing it.
Remember, the sooner you seek treatment for your toothache, the less likely your condition is to progress into something more serious!
Meet the Author
Dr. Thomas Gromling has nearly 40 years of experience helping patients in Stephens City improve their lives by enhancing their oral health. He earned his dental doctorate from the Medical College of Virginia at Virginia Commonwealth University and is a member of several prestigious institutions, including the American Dental Association. Today, he provides a comprehensive menu of services to people of all ages, including same-day appointments for emergencies. If you’ve developed a toothache and need help, you can request an appointment on the website or call (540) 869-4377.