Throbbing tooth pain that comes and goes
Everyone has concerns and worries about the state of their body. No matter how much you exercise, how much time you put into your diet, or the amount you visit your doctor, there will always be little aches and pains which you have to deal with.
Tooth pain is a great example of this. Countless people suffer with discomfort in their mouths, but it can be hard to take care of something like this when the pain comes and goes. Most people will be eager to visit a dentist when the pain if affecting them, but it won’t feel quite so crucial when it eases.
Throbbing tooth pain that comes and goes can be a sign of something much worse than you expect, and it’s something you have to take seriously. To help you out with this, this post will be exploring some of the steps you should take if you’re experiencing throbbing tooth pain.
Cleaning Up
While it is unlikely that this sort of tooth pain is caused by food debris in your mouth, it’s usually best to give the easiest solution a try first. Brushing your teeth twice a day is a good idea, and it can also help to use mouthwash and dental floss. This is particularly crucial when you’ve eaten a meal with food which can get caught in your teeth. There are loads of products on the market which can be a great help with this, with electric toothbrushes having the potential to be far more effective than a manual brush.
Assessing Things
If your throbbing pain doesn’t stop after you’ve given your mouth a good clean, it will be time to start assessing the state of your mouth.
A lot of dental problems don’t come with obvious visual signs, and it can be hard to figure out the source of the pain. When it comes to throbbing tooth pain that comes and goes, though, you’re likely to be suffering with an abscess.
An abscess occurs when you have an infection around the roots of your teeth, and a cavity is able to form which fills with puss. This doesn’t sound pleasant, and it definitely isn’t, with many people experiencing agony with their abscess.
This sort of condition will usually cause some swelling at the base of the tooth which is experiencing pain. If you gently touch this, you will be able to feel whether or not the source of the pain is coming from the roots of your teeth.
Whether you can find the source of the pain or not, it will be essential that you visit your dentist at this point. Your assessment can be useful to them, and it’s worth explaining your observations, even if you don’t really understand them. Of course, you won’t be able to escape a visit to their clinic.
Visiting The Dentist
A lot of people find the prospect of visiting a dentist daunting, though this can be made much easier if you have an idea of what to expect when you first arrive. There are three common procedures which are used to treat an abscess, and you can find them below.
- Root Canal: This is the most common treatment for an abscess. It involves removing the abscess and filling in the cavity it leaves behind, ensuring that it can’t form again. This isn’t a horrible procedure, and you will be able to receive pain relief before and after the main event.
- Tooth Extraction: If an abscess is simply too bad for a root canal, tooth extraction might be the only option. As the name suggests, this simply involves removing the tooth. You may also get a bridge during this treatment, replacing the tooth which has been removed.
- Incision & Drain: This is often only a temporary solution, but can often be a lot less traumatic than the others. An Incision and drain involves making a small cut in the gum to allow the puss to leak out.
Most dentists work extremely hard to make procedures like this more tolerable. They will be gently, friendly, and will put everything they can into making the whole thing as painless as possible. Of course, you can also help yourself.
By maintaining good dental hygiene and visiting your dentist regularly, you will make it much less likely that you will suffer with an abscess. For those who already have throbbing tooth pain, it will be worth getting yourself checked over as soon as possible.
