Damaged nerve questions (botched filling)

[dopeysgem]

I suffered nerve damage after a botched filling on #18. Shallow cavity that didn’t even go through the enamel, however, during the bite adjustment the dentist shaved down natural tooth in other areas of #18 and I felt a jolt of pain (like the jolt you feel when they’ve touched a nerve. I wasn’t numbed, so I felt everything!)

Within days I had intense pain on the left side of my tongue, back near the tooth. Fiery irritation, scratchy like there were little cuts everywhere, raw, etc. My whole tooth throbbed on and off, I had aching in my jaw bone behind the tooth and the tooth in front had referred pain and sensitivity.

I saw two endodontists and an oral surgeon for help. They could not figure out what happened or how to make it better. Just said give it time, nerves take a long time to heal.

After 10 months I started feeling some relief. My tongue wasn’t constantly hurting, my tooth stopped feeling “puffy,” the aching and referred pain stopped too.

But now it’s been 14 months and the tingling in my tongue has started to return on a consistent basis. Mild, but noticeable. The tooth has also started to feel puffy again. (That means the surface feels thicker and lumpy) Referred pain and aching have not returned yet.

Finally the questions…

Is it normal for a nerve to heal for months and then regress? What could this pattern indicate?

Can damaged nerves take more than a year to heal? One dentist told me up to two years.

Could regular brushing or eating be triggering my the tooth in anyway?

What other type of specialist could help me?

Finally, does this sound like irreversible damage? Or something that could come and go the rest of my life? Or something that could one day heal again and stay healed.

Thank you for reading.

 

[Dr M]

There is no specific timeline for the damaged nerves to heal. Sometimes it can take days, sometimes it can take months/years.
I highly doubt that adjustment of a filling, even if drilling through the enamel, into the dentin, could lead to the tongue sensations that you are experiencing.
The intitial tooth ache could be related to that, but the burning sensation on the tongue, could be due to a different cause, especially since you did not even get an injection.
The tongue sensation might have been more noticable, since you were focused on the tooth in that general area.
I would recommend looking into other causes.
Check for any fungal infections. Some fungal infections can lead to what we call, burning mouth or tongue syndrome. These fungal infections flare up during times of stress as well as times where your immune system might be a bit compromised.
An alternative dental specialist you could try, is an oral medicine specialist/periodontist. They are specialized in oral diseases.
You can mention that the endodontist ruled out any tooth-related causes.

 

[dopeysgem]

Thank you for that suggestion.

I know common things happen commonly and what I’m describing, during my filling, typically shouldn’t lead to pain in my tongue…but I had zero issues regarding tongue pain before the dental procedure. ZERO! Plus, the pain has only ever been on the side next to the filled tooth. Never the other side. The two dentists I have seen plus all the specialists have never indicated noticing any type of oral fungus or disease in my mouth.

Within two days of the procedure, my tongue was in pain. Within four days, I was back at the dentist getting an adjustment thinking that the natural tooth that was shaved down and left sharp, was cutting into my tongue. It took a while to realize this was not a superficial issue, but nerve related. After that initial adjustment, I had the most intense toothache and throbbing that started about eight hours later. I could feel my pulse in my tooth because it hurt so bad. It was the beginning of the “puffy” feeling in my tooth where the surface felt like it changed shape throughout the day. The jaw started aching too at this time and also the referred pain.

This tooth had never been worked on before. Clearly the pressure of the drill and/or smoothing tools caused these issues. Is it possible that just those actions can trigger an issue in a tooth without actually touching a nerve? What I mean is, could there be a dormant issue that got awakened by having work done?

Finally, the most important question I really am looking for guidance about is the fact that I was in healed mode for almost 4 months and now the pain is returning. Is that concerning or is that normal for a damaged nerve as it heals? Is regression OK in the long run or is that a sign of irreversible damage?

Thank you for your help!