Teeth Grinding is Not Fine
Posted by writeradmin
I hope you can help me. I have this pain that comes and goes on one of my back teeth. It’s like a temporary zing. It doesn’t last long but it does worry me. I do grind my teeth, but it is only that one tooth which is hurting. I go to the dentist regularly and he assures me everything is fine. I wish I was better at describing this. I’m just worried something is being overlooked. Have you heard of situations like mine?
Sandra
Dear Sandra,
It’s a little tough to give you an exact diagnosis because I haven’t examined you or even seen any x-rays. I can tell you some things in general. First, the type of pain you are experiencing does not sound like decay to me. It sounds like it can either be a result of gum disease or from the tooth grinding you mentioned.
I’m a bit concerned that your dentist says that everything is fine even though you grind your teeth. If that is the case, everything is definitely NOT fine. The first thing he should be doing is suggesting you get a mouth guard. Otherwise, you will end up grinding your teeth down to nubs. This will completely throw off your bite and jaw and is very likely to lead to TMJ Disorder — a painful condition you will want to avoid at all costs.
If your teeth get that bad, you will end up needing a full-mouth reconstruction. That means crowning every tooth in your mouth and is very expensive. This can be avoided with a mouth guard to protect your teeth.
I’m concerned your dentist is one of those bread and butter dentists who only looks for cavities. There are many other important things which need to be checked on, such as gum disease, signs of teeth grinding, oral cancer. If these things are not being checked, then I would say you are not with the best dentist.
I want you to get a second opinion from another dentist to see if the pain you’re experiencing is from the grinding or from gum disease. Either way, you’ll need to take steps for treatment. But, the treatments are completely different so you need to know what you’re dealing with first.
This blog is brought to you by Annapolis Dentist Dr. Meredith Esposito.