Constant flow of teeth problems

[anthonytcollege]

Hello everyone. I have been having problems with my teeth for the past three months.

Then: Early June i started having throbbing pain on one of my lower front teeth. After going to the dentist it was revealed that I had a serious root infection. The dentist took care of that problem, but the same day it healed and stopped bothering me, my furthest back, bottom left molar started hurting. Turns out, that the filling I had there had been cracked for some time, allowing it to develop decay, which resulted in yet another root infection. Since the dentist that had done the filling basically bridged my two molars with one big filling, instead of individual fillings, they both had broken fillings and required crowns (on top of one needing a root canal). A month later after that was fixed, and weekly visits for adjustments since it would start hitting shortly after they adjust the crowns , my wisdom teeth started hurting, along with the molars above the two molars previously mentioned.

Now: Wisdom teeth pulled, and crowns made, I now am having soreness on a older crown on the opposite side of my mouth, close to one of the wisdom teeth sites. The dentist believed it was due to having 4 crowns (currently with temps) on the opposite side, causing me to bite more on my right side, causing it to be sore. My questions is, the soreness comes even if I do not eat on that side, and it shifts from the front molar (the one with the crown from years ago), to the back of my second molar, and finally to the back of the extraction site of the wisdom teeth.

The wisdom teeth extraction was done 2 weeks ago, and the crowns on the top left molars done 1 week ago.

I went to the dentist again this past Tuesday, and he could not find anything wrong, other then a small spot I could be hitting in, which he adjusted. It may be me being incredibly paranoid that it's another infection, or decay not being seen, but I don't understand how it could become sore on it's own, if I have not been eating on it since yesterday morning.

Also, June was the time of my last cleaning, and x-rays didn't show anything on the teeth currently giving me problems.

What could it be, if not decay? What do you suggest I do / Ask my dentist to do?

 

[honestdoc]

Try an over the counter bite guard. If you are noticing improvement, consider having your dentist fabricate a custom hard&soft bite guard after all crowns and fillings are completed. You may be experiencing stress, change of daily routine, job and/or school, deadlines, etc.

 

[anthonytcollege]

Thank you for such a fast response. I will definitely try that. I also have a side question, mainly to help me calm myself down. Is it likely/possible for a tooth with a crown n it, to develop a cavity? I've had pain somewhere in my mouth every day for the past 3 months, so every little issue gets me worked up now lol.

 

[honestdoc]

It is possible for a crown tooth to have recurrent cavities. Do you drink sodas, sweetened coffee, energy drinks, any sugary/acidic beverages? Have your dentist check it. Having sensitivity does not necessarily mean you have a cavity and vice versa. Many times you don't feel sensitive with cavities.

 

[anthonytcollege]

No, i drink almost nothing but water. I saw the dentist tuesday, and he didnt see anything, but then again he didn't notice that I had decay under one of my fillings before, until he went to do the crown prep for it. I'm concerned because that is all he said, that he didn't see anything wrong. He didn't say anything about what it could be.

 

[honestdoc]

There may be a lot of factors and details in your case that I'm not aware of. If the tooth and filling look clear on x-rays and clinically, undetected decay under the filling is minimal and many times entombed or inactive. Same as under a crown. The dentist may use an explorer under the crown and if the tooth is solid, any undetectable decay is minimal. The dentist may take multiple x-rays of different angulations to verify. Drinking mostly water is the best. Sugary and acidic beverages bathe around your teeth and can cause extensive decay.

 

[Busybee]

All the work you've had has clearly led to an uneven bite where you are putting too much pressure on certain teeth. You may have been grinding before and that could have led to the broken fillings. It will be difficult to fix. Dentists give you a hard guard in order to diagnose whether the bite is the cause. An over the counter guard won't necessarily give you any relief as these should be custom made to your bite. If you have this problem biting on a guard that isn't specially made could give you more pain. You probably need some teeth adjusted down but it's complex to fix this and you should see a specialist prosthodontist. I am not a dentist but I know all about this because I had a similar problem.

 

[honestdoc]

Depending on your location, a custom guard where I'm located costs about $350 to $450. Unfortunately most of my patients can not afford it. I usually tell them to try an OTC guard for about $20-30 and save up for a custom one.

 

[anthonytcollege]

Forgot to come back and reply. I went to a second dentist Tuesday and after an examination he determined that the temporary crowns I have on my opposite side of my face are the problem. When my dentist made them, he made them too low, so my right side is hitting first, making it sore.