Sharp Pain After Filling with Pressure

[thisisme]

I know I unnecessarily worry, but after four fillings yesterday (all in one side), a bottom molar (which replaced an old filling) has a sharp pain with extreme pressure. I don’t have it when my teeth meet and only noticed it when I was holding my toothbrush with those teeth to free up a hand to grab something.

It is not one he said was deep or had issues with it.

How long should I give it before I panic? I know I’m already panicking, haha. The tooth didn’t bother me before, so it worries me it does now.

 

[krlovesherkids777]

This is me. sorry to hear about this pain.. hope it settles soon!

 

[Gordon]

The ligament holding the tooth in might have been a bit bruised during the course of the filing, try and not bite too hard on it for a couple of days and it should settle back down again. You don't need to go onto a soft diet, just be a bit careful when you're eating and don't strain it.

 

[thisisme]

The ligament holding the tooth in might have been a bit bruised during the course of the filing, try and not bite too hard on it for a couple of days and it should settle back down again. You don't need to go onto a soft diet, just be a bit careful when you're eating and don't strain it.

Thanks, Gordon. So what you’re saying is don’t continuously keep pressing on it to check to see if it still hurts? ? I’ll give it a few days and hope for the best. I am all caught up on treatment (I was a decade plus avoider), so all of these sensations are very new to me. I’m not planned for a cleaning until March. I’d like to not go back before then. ??

 

[Gordon]

Yes basically give it a chance to recover on its own, it's very hard not to keep "testing" things to see if they're better but if you can manage to leave it alone, that's the best thing to do.

 

[thisisme]

Yes basically give it a chance to recover on its own, it's very hard not to keep "testing" things to see if they're better but if you can manage to leave it alone, that's the best thing to do.

Hi Gordon. Do you have a time frame of when a bruised ligament will heal? I avoided it for days, forgot briefly, and felt it after biting on a piece of crunchy bread. I’ll go back to avoiding that side with crunchy foods, but if you had a time frame to reference before going in, that would be very helpful. Thank you!

The tooth was filled Tuesday around 515pm.

 

[Gordon]

I'd have thought a week was probably long enough. If it still happens then get the dentist to adjust the filling a bit, it might be just a fraction too high.

 

[thisisme]

Well, I gave it four weeks. It feels like it’s gotten a little better but it still happens, especially when I forget about it.

So I braved it and went in. The good news he can’t find anything wrong. The bad news is he can’t find anything wrong.

He did a few tests (some cold endo test with a gross tasting liquid) and also had me bite on a ball thing on four teeth to confirm which one it was. Endo test came back find on all lower back molars. Bite test only had pain on that tooth.

He says it’s typical for cracks but can’t find any. He did a minor bite adjustment (lowered the filling a bit) and said maybe it’ll help or we’ll have to investigate further.

It’s frustrating because it replaced an old filling. One that I didn’t have any pain in. One of the reasons I originally stopped going was because I had sensitivity after cavity fillings when those teeth never bothered me before.

16 years later, here we go again.

Gordon, what are your thoughts? Could a sprained ligament take weeks to heal if I’m not resting it?

 

[Gordon]

Yes, it's not that you're not resting it, you're re-traumatising it every time you bite on the tooth if the new filling is too high. Hopefully now the bite has been adjusted it'll get the chance to recover. They always do, if the source of the trauma is dealt with.

 

[thisisme]

Hi all, just bumping this thread up. Three months later and I still have pain when chewing harder/crunchy food. Dentist can not find source of issue when I followed up and I’m not willing to subject myself to more appointments than necessary. ?

Is it possible the white filling didn’t bond to the tooth properly? I just don’t know why he wouldn’t admit that it’s a possibility. Would it be unreasonable to ask him to refill it for free at my next appointment if it’s still not better?

 

[Gordon]

Is it possible the white filling didn’t bond to the tooth properly? I just don’t know why he wouldn’t admit that it’s a possibility. Would it be unreasonable to ask him to refill it for free at my next appointment if it’s still not better?

Yes it's possible, it would fit your symptoms. Your third question rather answers your second one if you follow me... yes, it would be reasonable to expect a free replacement if you're still having issues. In the old days the NHS would cover a free replacement for the first 6 months, but these days they won't.

 

[thisisme]

If anyone finds this thread while searching, a replacement filling fixed the issue. My dentist was adamant it was a crack he couldn’t see but I got pretty stubborn in the chair and said just refill it. It’s been over two weeks and it’s just fine now.