tooth filling pain

Hi, I went to the dentist about 3 months ago with a tooth sensitive to hot and cold and painful when chewing. We opted to replace the existing filling. First session he was unable to numb the tooth. He gave me about 8 injections but soon as he started drilling I could feel it. Next session was better, he managed to drill and fill though I could still feel it. The newly filled tooth continued to give me discomfort initially with hot and cold. It has since been sensitive when chewing. In the last couple of days it has flaired up giving me constant greif especially after eating or drinking. Pain is felt along the jaw to the ear. Have had dull headaches and now my top tooth, the one that bites down on the sensitive one is also giving me greif. I will go back to my dentist but am fearful that he wont be able to numb the tooth again. Could it be something other than the tooth. I am a moderate smoker also. Thanks


This discussion is related to Severe tooth, jaw, face pain after minor filling - 2nd Opinion?.

[Gellia]

Hi,
Was the filling exceptionally large?  It may have come very close to the nerve and still be irritating it.  Taking an antiiflammatory like ibuprofen may help.

Is your bite correct?  If the opposing upper tooth bothers you now also, it may be because the filling is a bit high.

Do you clench or grind your teeth?  Clenching down on a high filling can be very painful for the tooth and also cause pain in the opposing tooth.  

The tooth may also have developed a crack, esp. if it is painful biting down.  You may need a root canal done and a crown on it.  Hopefully an RC would reveal the crack if it's there, also.  They can be hard to see on xray.  

I would start by seeing if your bite is correct.  Your dentist may need to adjust it and that may be all you need.  A trip to see him/her would be in order.

GOOD LUCK and do let us know how you do.

My best to you,
Gellia

[AQM]

I'm suddenly having a very similar experience. Started yesterday. I got my filling replaced from silver to white but only because it was one of the teeth that was indicated as needing a new filling from minor cavities (not bad). Due to insurance reasons, I asked the team to do only the 2 most critical. Only one was most critical I guess, but the doc said it would be easier to do the two that are next to each other rather than having to come back to get numbed again. It took a really long time to get me numb enough for them to work on those two bottom teeth. So I said to go ahead and do the top one on the other side since I feel like it sort of bothers me (I couldn't pin point it). It was a large filling and it seemed like they did a lot of drilling especially compared to the other two. I asked about this once he was done "was that a larger filling?" and he said "no, just different surfaces". Now, 3 weeks later, all of a sudden that top tooth (that didn't really need to be done) is hurting. Pain when biting anything crunchy and just ate a hot dish and OWW! Still aching after 45 minutes. I'll call him tomorrow but now I have a feeling...root canal. I will also add that they were rushing (they close at 6 and I was still there at 6:30 with full chairs PLUS the doc had to meet another doc at 6:25 which was a pushed back meeting from 6ish...I overheard the convo) so now i wonder about all of them being done properly and correctly.

[elle16111986]

I'm having a similar issue. I had a slight pain in my top, back tooth on the left so I checked it out and I thought I saw a cavity, so went to the dentist the very next day. He said it was a cavity and that the same tooth on the right had one too. He then suggested that the 2 teeth in front of those were very likely going to develop cavities in the next 6 months, so to save me having to go back he should do it at the same time. I'd had a procautionary filling before that went well, so I agreed. Well it was the most drilling I'v ever experienced, and it took lots of anestethic to make me numb! Once the numbness went away all those teeth ached and were sensitive to chewing, cold and sometimes hot - I thought this might be normal due to the drilling. Well the problem has persisted for around 3 weeks now and my whole jaw (top and bottom) now aches when I chew anything. It's really frustrating as these teeth were never sensitive before. I'm sure when one thing goes wrong with your teeth everything starts going wrong! I do clench and grind my teeth in my sleep, but I can't even wear my tooth guard any more because it puts pressure on the filled teeth. I'm very sad about it all and very worried, indeed.

[123unshine]

I am finally pain-free! I had an intense pain and temperature sensitivity after teeth filling for a month, lived on Ibuprofen. My dentist said that we might have to do root canal. 3 days ago, I went to my other dentist (who is a specialist) and he recommended rubbing gently into the tooth Sensodyne-F (almost like polishing the tooth). I followed the advice diligently... and that was painful too! To reduce my initial sufferings I've used Anbesol gel to numb my gum. First day the tooth was still in pain, I felt something is different, my gum reacted as well. However, today, the pain in gone. Wish you the same!

[staceybeck01]

I talked to my new dentist in Allen TX and he just recommended using sensitive toothpaste.  You could try that and see if it works, if not I would go back to your dentist and talk to him.  Maybe he didn't fill it deep enough or it has turned into something more serious.  I would go quick though before it gets worse.