Many people in Miami Lakes have sprained tooth syndrome which is tooth discomfort with no apparent reason. Patients tell us that one of their teeth hurts or is sensitive all the time and this is what happens when. We are told that we are what happens when we bite or eat something hard or ground our teeth. This happens when the ligaments that hold a tooth in its socket get stretched or hurt like when you sprain your ankle or wrist.
Knowing how the body works with sprained tooth syndrome can help explain why this hurts so much. Periodontal ligaments are small ligaments that surround each tooth and act like shock absorbers. When you bite and chew these ligaments allow your jaw to move a little which helps to distribute the forces of eating throughout your jaw. But if too much force is used quickly or repeatedly these sensitive ligaments can get irritated and hurt.
There are many reasons why someone can get sprained tooth syndrome but most of the time it’s because of trauma or too much stress on one tooth. We see this condition happen when patients bite down on something hard like a popcorn kernel, an ice cube or a piece of bone in their food. Also grinding or clenching your teeth especially while you sleep can slowly put stress on these ligaments until they become inflamed. This condition can also happen after dental work that requires you to be in your mouth open for a long time or aggressive work on your teeth.
It’s hard to tell if someone has sprained tooth syndrome because the symptoms can mimic other dental conditions. Patients say they feel pain when they bite down or release pressure on the tooth that hurts. The pain is usually different from a cavity pain it feels like a deep ache or throb. Also when patients touch the tooth with their tongue it may feel a little loose or “different” but this looseness is usually very small.
At Specialty Smiles we use certain diagnostic methods to diagnose sprained tooth syndrome and rule out other diseases. We use special paper or tools to do bite tests to find out which tooth is the problem. We may also take x-rays to make sure there are no broken bones or other structural damage. We may also use special tools to diagnose and diagnose the disease. We can tell if the trauma has affected the nerve in the tooth by doing temperature tests.
Most of the time treatment for sprained tooth syndrome starts with gentle methods that allow the swollen ligaments to heal on their own. We tell people to avoid hard or chewy foods that can make the problem worse as it heals. Anti-inflammatory drugs can help with pain and swelling while the ligaments heal. We may also adjust the way you bite a little to relieve pressure on the tooth that hurts as you chew normally.
The time it takes for sprained tooth syndrome to heal depends on the severity of the damage and how soon treatment starts. Mild cases usually go away in a few days to a week. More serious cases can take weeks or even months to fully heal. We keep a close eye on our patients to make sure they are healing as planned and no problems arise.
Miami Lakes people can prevent sprained tooth syndrome in the future by using prevention techniques. Being careful when you eat hard foods and chewing gently can save your teeth from getting hurt suddenly. We recommend custom night guards for people who grind their teeth at night. These guards protect the teeth from too much stress. These tools distribute the grinding forces more evenly over all the teeth instead of putting all the tension on one tooth.
If sprained tooth syndrome is not treated or if the initial injury was severe problems can happen. The tooth that is hurt may have nerve damage that needs root canal treatment. Chronic inflammation can also cause bone loss at the base of the tooth which can compromise its long term stability. Some individuals may need orthodontic treatment during Sleep Apnea treatment if bruxism associated with sleep disturbances caused the initial injury.
We stress the importance of patients to have a professional evaluation as soon as they have unexplained tooth pain because early treatment usually means better results and faster healing for this condition.