Toothache Pain and Crown Question

[Forever Learning]

Oh please tell me what you know. I have a toothache, bottom middle molar, on the outside side of tooth (near cheek side) at gum line. I have lost the enamel there, exposing the dentin (?)

 

I have been soaking the tooth in Sensodyne toothpaste (helps but not always and not totally), swishing with warm salt water (same deal, semi-helpful), taking Advil, Tylenol and Aspirin in rotation. Does anyone have any other remedies? I do have an appointment to see a dentist.

 

Do you think I will need a root canal and crown? Or just a filling? Can they place a filling that low on the tooth, at the gum line? Or does that necessitate a crown? The pain is about a 5 on a scale of 1 - 10. And, it's not low in the tooth root, it's right near the spot where enamel is missing. Not deep in tooth or jaw, etc.

 

Also, has anyone tried Clove oil on a hurting tooth? Read it can help. I have to bear with this until probably well into next week due to holidays.

 

Thanks in advance for any ideas for pain and/or what the dentist may recommend to correct the tooth.

[Feelin Frisky]

Ambesol on a Q-tip is about as effective a topical anaesthetic as you can get over the counter. I personally hate getting it on my tongue but the pain in the tooth trumps that. I don't know that there's any sense to rotating the three OTC pain meds. One will do and I would take 800mgs of Ibuprofen at a time--four tabs. Wait 6 hours before taking that again and try not to have an empty stomach with that (or aspirin).

 

My understanding of "crowns" is that it's pretty much a fake tooth that goes over a tooth that has had root canal and a "post" inserted to support the crown along with the remainder of the ground down tooth that will disappear inside the crown. It's an expensive proposition that should be considered cautiously in the long term based upon the health of the teeth next to the one being worked on. If they appear perfectly fine with no worries you get a crown (which will vary in cost based upon material like porcelain, gold or some cheaper acrylic). If you have issues with the adjoining teeth, you wouldn't want to get an expensive crown. You might want to have the tooth extracted, have the adjoining teeth worked on and then get a three-tooth bridge that will sit on the stumps of the two and also fill in the spot where the extraction was with a fake tooth. I have had this and it came out great. That's when I had great insurance though. A gum-line cavity on a molar is hard to predict. If you don't need root canal, they may be able to put an acrylic "cap" if the filling creates an eye-sore. That's a lot less money than a "crown" which would cover the entire tooth/post combination. I don't know if they put "posts" in molars due to the pressure your likely to exert on it. Whatever happens I'll still love you. Teeth options change with age and no single tooth is the kiss of death forever.

[Forever Learning]

My endorphin surges for you have been the most effective pain relief so far.

[Forever Learning]

Well to follow up for anyone interested I did see a dentist today, for free no less - this dentist offered free panoramic x-rays along with bitewings and a free exam.

 

He thinks he can get away with just a filling on the tooth (which normally runs $215, but they accept a discount dental plan that they gave me info about signing up for which costs $12 a month and the filling price would be brought down to around $100, inclusive of all the bells and whistles such as laughing gas and novacaine). This filling will be done on Tuesday, after the holidays.

 

For anyone in Texas who is interested, the Dental plan is called "Careington Dental" and it is accepted at the dental chain "Castle Dental" (among other dentists as well). Castle Dental seems to have the lowest overall dental prices in the area. They even offer financing to $800 to everyone regardless of credit score, so long as you have a checking account. I thought that was interesting. The dentist I saw is not with Castle Dental though. Just mentioning Castle because they seemed like a great option for folks in need of emergency dental who don't have alot of spare cash on hand because they finance.

 

So I am a very happy camper about the cost, now I just need to abide the pain until Tuesday. I am going to try the clove oil in addition to the other items I mentioned in the initial post, and I will report back as to how effective the clove oil is. Next on my first aid list is red red wine. Cheers and wish me luck on my pain avoidance journey to Tuesday!

Edited December 31, 2011 by Forever Learning

[johan]

My grandfather used some pliers he had lying around in his shop to pull out some teeth that were giving him problems. I guess he went back to work after his eyes stopped watering.

 

That's always an option for you.

[Forever Learning]

Truthfully my grandfather did that as well, most farm families did, mine were dairy and chicken farmers, along with trapping for pelts on the side. They lived hours from civilization up in the mountains, where there were no paved roads nor dentists to be found. True story by the way.

 

Gee thanks for the help Johan, I knew I could count on you!

Edited December 31, 2011 by Forever Learning

[Forever Learning]

Well my toothache pain magically went away all on it's own. Praise Jesus. I did look for clove oil at the supermarket but never found any.

 

Went to the dentist, looks like I can get away with 2 fillings, no crowns or root canals needed. Phantom toothache pain is scary indeed. I will still keep an eye out for clove oil should I need it in the future, if it is indeed helpful for a sudden toothache that can't be attended to due to circumstances of holidays and dentists being closed and such.

 

I would still be interested in toothache rememdies that people have found useful, should anyone know of any. It would be nice to know what to do in a pinch down the road if this happens again in the distant future.

 

The warm salt water and Sensodyne toothpaste seemed to help alot, along with taking Advil and such. Cheers!