Could my dentist be wrong?

[HurryUpAndWait23]

I'm having searing pain by my wisdom tooth when I drink coffee. It feels way more intense than a sensitive tooth.

I saw my dentist yesterday, she did an X-ray yesterday which she said would show any cavities.
It didn't.

But the pain is horrible.

Could the X-ray not have shown the cavaty?

Is it only when you drink coffee, or any hot drink? If the former then why don’t you stop drinking it?

I have sensitive molars.

Sensitive to sugary foods

I just don't eat certain things anymore 🤷🏽‍♀️

It is possible your tooth is cracked at an angle that doesn't show on an xray. I've had this. My dentist couldn't see anything on the xray, but told me due to symptoms it was likely a crack.

It could just be sensitivity.
It could also be a cracked tooth, which apparently often doesn't show up on X rays.

glenoaksdental.com/unexplained-tooth-pain-you-may-have-a-cracked-tooth/

I've had sensitive teeth before and this pain is different. But I'm buying sensitive tooth paste today because I'm hoping I'm wrong.

I was wondering if it was at an angle that couldn't be seen.

I've never had a cavity (or crack) so I don't know what that pain is like.

I do know I've never had pain like this before.

@plodalong12

Is it only when you drink coffee, or any hot drink? If the former then why don’t you stop drinking it?

I've just drank water to check (because you asked a question I realised I couldn't answer!) and it is any liquid that hurts it.

Eating hurts too but I just chew on the other side.
Drinks are an issue.

So is she just leaving it??
I had searing pain in a back tooth. There was some sort of crack and the nerve pain I’d I even tried to eat bread on that side was searing! The tooth was alive and the dentist was reluctant to “kill” the tooth with a root canal. So she made a porcelain filling (made it from a mould of my tooth and I came back and had it fitted) as a last chance saloon. It sits like a cap on the tooth and it’s been stable ever since!

Tooth pain is horrible

How are your gums?

I had similar a few weeks ago, any type of temperature change hurt, and it hurt to chew on. It's a swollen gum (caused by pregnancy in my case), and Corsodyl has taken the edge off, although I'm not sure if there would be a better treatment if I wasn't pregnant. They weren't willing to do X-rays or anything until after the baby arrives.

I have a back molar which hurts when I bite down on food but not otherwise. My dentist did X-rays and couldn’t see any cavities (the tooth already has a filling actually) but he spotted a very tiny hairline crack on the X-ray, after a lot of close peering. It’s annoying because he said there’s basically nothing they can do about it and I just have to put up with it! Sensitive toothpaste has helped quite a lot though.

I have a tooth that been like this for about 20 years now. Multiple dentists have xrayed it and the current conclusion is that its root is too close to my sinuses so if they swell at all, my tooth hurts. And due to hayfever etc I often have irritated sinuses so the tooth often hurts. But knowing it's not rotting helps, and I do sinus massage to keep them drained which also helps. Nothing wrong with getting a second opinion but yes, a tooth can hurt and be technically fine.

Trigeminal Neuralgia? I was getting pain which felt like being smashed in the chops with a hammer. Sent to the dental hospital for further investigations (300 x-rays!). Teeth fine. Sent for an MRI - wonky nerves.

I’m on pregablin now and try and avoid wind on my face.

Hi OP, if it’s all liquid including cold water I would definitely go back (could you see a different dentist?) Even if there’s nothing showing up on the x Ray, or even if you don’t have a cavity, something is still clearly giving you pain for some reason and it needs sorting, or at least some painkillers or numbing gel to alleviate the pain while they explore other options. I’m not a dentist, but I am a person who knows tooth pain! Sympathies

Rubbing some extra toothpaste over any sensitive gu ms after brushing and leaving it there will help. Do daily until symptoms subside. Use Sensodyne or similar.

I once had this - there was a tiny crack near the gum, that the dentist hadn’t noticed. But a different dentist did.
I’d try a different dentist.

This has been helpful. I didn't even consider tiny crack.

I'm going to try sensitive tooth paste and otherwise will go back.

It's my wisdom tooth so I feel like I could argue it being taken out altogether if the pain continues.

Does it hurt when you tap it? Try doing that with the handle of your toothbrush or the handle of a spoon or fork. If it does it’s dying and it will need to come out.

My friend's dentist told her for two years that there was nothing wrong with the tooth that was causing her so much pain.
It was the hygienist who mentioned a possible crack.
Finally the crack made it to the surface. The dentist glued it first, but the pain persisted (agonizing, not able to sleep type pain) and the dentist finally agreed to take the tooth out.
My friend is a new woman!

I had a abscess in a wisdom tooth over the Christmas holidays a few years ago. If was awful, made worse by having to wait for a dentist to be back at work. She just extracted it. It wasn't worth the faffing around trying to save it. The loss of the tooth has made absolutely no difference to my life or my other teeth, so I'd say get it removed if the dentist can't resolve the issue.

I had a cracked molar, didn't show up on an xray and the pain was indescribable. I got root canal treatment and now has a crown over it, I dread the day that crown needs to come out

I was also going to say trigeminal Neuralgia.
Is the pain only on one side and comes when eating, drinking, cleaning teeth. Touching face etc?
Is it like a lightening bolt of pain up your cheek but feels like it starts in the teeth?
I had all sorts of root canal surgery thinking my pain was dental. On the end the dentist said he thought it was neurological rather than dental and sent me to GP.
Good luck op

I had this two months ago, preceded by an abscess. It took 3 visits to the dentist to find that I'd hairline cracked a tooth further along. I had a root canal and porcelain crown over three more appointments. It was expensive but worth it. No pain, I've not lost the tooth. The root canal was a breeze.

@Queenie8
I have had to have two of these in the last few years. I was referred by my dentist to a root canal surgery [expensive!!!] each time but can't fault the procedures. So I have had to have two root canals and two crowns.

Isn't it better to keep your teeth if you can, rather than have them taken out?

It's my wisdom tooth so it isn't worth expensive treatement.
Or at least it feels like it's that tooth, I'd try and save the one next to it.

I'm pretty convinced it's a crack that has gone unnoticed.

I've started putting on the sensitive toothpaste. Which hurts like buggery.

@AlphabetAerobics, you had 300 x-rays?