Dental pain

[Shadow Catcher]

I have never had dental pain either, other than braces, (much more painful as an adult). There is however real danger if NOT taken care of, it can potentially kill you with the infection. The longer this individual waits the worse it is likely to get.

[eamarquardt]

http://www.theroot.com/buzz/unemployed- ... -infection

IMHO the fellow died from terminal stupidity. The infection was secondary. He had money for painkillers but not for antibiotics. He didn't follow the doctor's treatment plan nor did he inform the doctor he wasn't doing so. His aunt is a well known singer and could have helped him.

You gotta pay attention to the clues your body is providing you.

Gus

[Shadow Catcher]

There are historical accounts of among other things one Egyptian queen who died of an dental infection. I had a class mate, anthropology, who studied dental caries in prehistoric man and came to the conclusion that most did not live long enough for it to be a problem. What we know now is that diet minus sugar's = good teeth, for the most part. I can go into excruciating detail
I have a client (social work) who is minus most of his teeth in large part because of an addiction to Mt Dew He had a very nearly fatal infection, and one thing to know there has been a lack of research and development of new antibiotics.

[Redgloves]

I have worked in long term care (nursing home). Dentures are a hassel in nuring homes, become play toys for residents with various forms of dementia.

Picture Grandma complaining about something under dentures, takes them out at the table or on plate. Either the dentures end up in the garbage, on the floor, next Grandma/Grandpa picks them up....... Never ending cycle of looking for Grandma/Grandpas teeth.

If dentures are your answer, make sure your last name is on them.

As a person ages, bones shrink and dentures don't fit. Keep your own teeth.

I have also seen patients in ICU extremely sick from ignoring dental infections. Infections can travel to brain, heart, kidneys. Antibiotics are cheap compared to hospital bill.

[rebapuck]

Redgloves, Good idea with the name. I use to make dentures and that was never requested. Very easy to do.

Any dental procedure can be painless. You just have to let the Dr know you are feeling something. Root canals, no problem.

Like stated. it's the infection that will get you.

[aggie79]

I've always cared for my teeth but unfortunately inherited bad genes. As a result I have had four root canals. I also have one dental implant (tooth). Neither the root canals nor the implant were painful. They more inconvenience than anything. The pain of an infected tooth, though, can be debilitating. I'd tell your friend to get things taken care of.

[TJinPgh]

I'll preface my response to this by saying that I've never been very consistent about taking care of my teeth. So, most things I've had done at one point in time or another over the course of my life.

Have you ever had a nagging toothache that's kept you up at night?

I had an abscess that was excruciating. Anti-biotics sometimes help. Otherwise, they have to get in there and drain the infection, either by drilling the tooth or removing it if it can't be saved. Awful experience. If the abscess is bad enough, anesthetic won't always work. Anything beyond that that I've ever had, regular OTC pain killers usually do the trick.

What's a root canal feel like?

The answer to this is the same as the answer to most dental procedures. Depends on the dentist. If they know their stuff and properly administer the anesthetic before hand, I don't find them to be significantly worse than any other procedure other than the time required to do them. If also depends on whether or not they are killing all the nerves or just one of them. If they are killing just one, the tooth can be quite sensitive for a while afterward. Oherwise, there is no nerve left so there shouldn't really be any pain to deal with after the fact. Your jaw may hurt like heck, though, from being pried open that long, depending on where it is.

The tooth may or may not require a crown afterward, depending on how much of it they destroy in the process. With a full root canal, the tooth may eventually have to be pulled, but I have not yet had that problem on the couple I've had done.

Are dentures worth it?

In general, I'd say yes. If you're missing all of your teeth, you obviously need to ask yourself how much of a headache do you want to go through to eat tough foods.

I'll qualify this by saying that my mother has dentures. I have a bridge. So, there is a bit of a difference there. I have always been of the opinion that the human mouth is designed to have a certain number of teeth. You can get away with having one or two on the ends pulled, but if you start pulling teeth in the middle you're going to eventually have issues. May take a few years but missing teeth will likely cause the surrounding teeth to loosen. At least, that's been the case with those I've known, anyway. Everybody is different, I suppose.

Implants are another option that alleviate some of the headaches of dentures. A lot more expensive, though. I don't know anybody who has them to really comment on them beyond that.

I was just talking to a friend of mine and she's in some really bad dental pain and I was thinking that I don't know what it feels like.
I've never had a cavity, a root canal or a filling. I take really good care of my teeth and I see the dentist 6 times a year

Like I said, I don't take the best care of mine. In contrast, though, my mother took great care of her teeth. Brushed all the time and still ended up having every tooth in her mouth pulled as they became infected at the roots. There are some people who, unfortunately, have dental problems no matter how well they take care of them.

Other than that, I'd just say... 6 times a year? Sheesh.

[TJinPgh]

The pain of an infected tooth, though, can be debilitating. I'd tell your friend to get things taken care of.

Agreed. I'd put it right up there with a kidney stone if it's let go long enough.

Any tooth ache that lasts longer than a day or two should really be checked. They have all sorts of procedures now for those who cannot handle pain well, including lasers as well as those doctors who will completely sedate the patient and you sleep through the whole thing.

They did that when they pulled one of my wisdom teeth that was impacted.

[Mukilteo]

By law we have to put the patient's last name in every removable appliance we make here in Washington State.

[TJinPgh]

Many pharmacies do have free antibiotics. Most others can be had for $4.

Just sayin'.

[TJinPgh]

If you're gonna try yanking it out yourself, just be careful to get the whole thing (in other words, hope it doesn't break) and make sure you have a bucket near by to catch the infectious puss that's going to come shooting out of that socket.

When they yanked mine, that was, by far, the nastiest thing I'd ever experienced and I was very thankful for that suction thingy they have at the dentists office.

Not trying to be overly graphic but there's no other way to really explain that one.