Treating A Toothache: What Is The Right Way To Get Relief?
Are you experiencing a bad toothache? The pain may come and go, but it likely gets worse when you are trying to get rest at night. The reason that toothaches tend to get even worse when people are trying to sleep is that there is more pressure applied to the head during that time. Unfortunately, the pain probably will not go away on its own. Even if you can get temporary relief, the pain associated with a toothache is often a sign of a much bigger problem.
What Would Cause a Toothache?
While some people will experience a toothache because they have injured the tooth during a motor vehicle accident or a fall where their mouth may have hit the ground, others will experience pain at random without knowing why the toothache is happening. The pain is often a sign of decay. If ignored for too long, decay can become a lot worse, causing an infection to develop. A tooth infection is serious. It can cause you pain and lead to other serious symptoms, including fever, swelling of the face, and extreme sensitivity.
Will Home Remedies Work?
You can treat the pain at home when you are unable to get to the dentist right away, but home remedies will only work for so long. When you start to experience the pain, take an over-the-counter pain reliever, apply a heating pad to the face, and consider having a cup of warm ginger tea. These home remedies will work to ease some of the pain so that you can get some rest before you go to the dental office. Even if you can get the pain to go away completely after trying these different remedies, you should still make an urgent appointment to have your teeth examined.
When Is It Best to Go to the Dentist?
You should make a dental appointment at your earliest convenience. If the office is closed, you can still call the office and leave a message about your situation. The dentist can call you back and request to have you come into the office right away for an exam. The dentist is going to want to see you as soon as you can get to the office to figure out why you are experiencing such pain. While checking your teeth, the dentist will look for signs of different issues, including:
- Dental decay
- A dental abscess that may need to be drained
- Inflammation of the gums
If you have dental decay, the solution to your toothache may involve getting a filling or a root canal. It does depend on the size of the cavity that is causing your pain. If you have a dental abscess, the dentist will need to carefully drain the pus out. You will likely receive a prescription for antibiotics that will help fight off any infection that was developing.
Will the Pain Stop After Dental Treatment?
The pain that you are feeling should come to a complete stop after you receive professional dental treatment. Make sure to let the dentist know of any problems you are having with any of the teeth in your mouth. The dentist knows best and will be able to diagnose different issues and then treat them to protect the teeth and put a stop to your pain. If you continue to experience discomfort, reach out to the dentist and let him or her know. You may need to come back into the office for additional treatment.
When you have tooth pain, you need to find out why it is happening. You can get some relief at home by using heating pads, taking pain relievers, and drinking warm ginger tea, but you will still need to go to the dental office. Only a dentist would be able to identify the root cause of your discomfort and then provide the right method of treatment.