You may think of a toothache as a minor inconvenience, a nagging pain you can live with. In reality, nothing could be further from the truth. A toothache can indicate serious problems that could lead to tooth loss, infections, and more.
Here are a few reasons why you should never ignore a toothache and what you should do if you have one:
Potential Tooth Infections
Most of the time, a toothache is an indicator that you have an infection. It could be in your gums or tooth roots, or you could have an abscess in your jaw. As with any infection, it is likely to get worse over time. Infections in the teeth and gums can also spread to other areas of the body, causing more serious problems and even fatal. The sooner you speak to a dentist or doctor, the sooner you can receive treatment to fight the infection.
Unbearable Pain
A toothache may start as a dull pain, but if you don’t get it treated, it will worsen. Once an infection sets in, your tooth pain will likely get much worse and happen quickly. Before long, you may be living with pain that will affect your daily activities. You might have trouble eating or speaking, suffer from headaches, or develop symptoms of infection like fever, chills, and nausea.
Tooth Loss
If you start treating your toothache early enough, your chances of keeping the affected teeth are very high. If not, the infection could spread and damage your tooth roots irreparably. Once your tooth roots are damaged, you may be able to save the associated tooth with a root canal, but if you need to undergo that procedure, you will most certainly wish you had taken care of the problem sooner. Without any treatment, a toothache will eventually kill the tooth roots, causing the tooth to die and fall out.
Worsening Oral Health Conditions
As is the case with most health issues, early detection will prevent worse problems from developing in the future. If you have a toothache and don’t treat it, you could develop gum disease, serious infections, and other issues that will be much more difficult to treat. In most cases, treating a toothache is as simple as taking an antibiotic, but if you develop more serious issues, you may need surgery, or you may need to have some of your teeth extracted.
Dental Office in Downtown Chicago
If you are a Chicago area resident experiencing tooth pain, we encourage you to get it checked out as soon as possible! The team at American Dental will be happy to help you find the cause of your toothache and begin a treatment plan. Visit our contact page to find dental offices in Chicago communities like Belmont Cragin, Palos Heights, and River West. We have eight locations to serve you, so visit our contact page for a list of our clinics or to schedule an appointment online today!