Glendale Dentist Reviews the Causes of Dental Pain and When to Seek Treatment for a Toothache

Written by Dr. McKay on Nov 20, 2012

As a patient, it’s critical that you’re able to identify dental problems in your own life so that you can seek treatment right away. Too many patients take a “wait and see” approach with dental problems—unfortunately, this often means that patients have already sustained serious dental damage by the time they seek treatment.

Our Glendale dentist office is here to help you understand how toothaches originate, and what you should do when you notice dental pain. Read on to learn more about how toothaches develop.

Most of the layers of the tooth, like the enamel and dentin, don’t have pain sensors. These layers actually protect the inner core of the tooth from harm. The core of the tooth has dental nerves, which can cause a toothache when they’re irritated or inflamed.

How does this happen?

Any dental problem that reaches the dental nerves will cause a toothache. Common causes of toothaches include:

  • Cavities that have progressed through the outer layers of the tooth into the dental pulp
  • A dental injury that cracks or chips the tooth down to the dental pulp
  • An infection caused by gum disease where the infection moves through the gum tissue to the dental tissue

What can you do about it?

Once you’re experiencing a toothache, you really need restorative dentistry to restore the health of your tooth. A dentist can clean dental and gum infections, and fill or cap the damaged tooth.

Whatever you do, don’t just wait to see if the pain improves on its own. If left untreated, these conditions can lead to serious infections, tooth loss, and even bone deterioration.

To schedule a consultation with our Glendale dentist give our dental office a call. We work with our patients to both treat existing dental problems and prevent future toothaches.