Dentist said: "it's normal for pain to get worse before it gets better" after filling - ???!

[WoolyMammoth55]

So after seeing a bunch of random rubbish London dentists in my twenties, including one who gave me a filling, I had found a dentist that I loved and thought was fab, but he retired during lockdown 1.

I haven't seen a dentist since and had been having some very slight tooth pain - not enough to really bother me but enough to go to see someone.

The new dentist is close to our new house and it seemed logical to give him a try. He seemed fine at the initial consult - did an x-ray and said the filling from 20 years ago had failed and there was some slight decay behind it. He proposed removing it and re-doing it, said it was the best course of action - dangerous to leave decay untreated even though the pain was minimal.

During the filling appointment he was very rough, it was super uncomfortable just being in the chair and the way he handled my jaw and face - the gums and tooth were numb but the rest of me felt pretty mauled.

It's been a long time since the filling was done but I don't remember feeling so uncomfortable? At one point the dental nurse did a sort of gasp and moved quickly away which freaked me out. But he just carried on.

Afterwards he said that the decay had been quite deep, the nerve might have been touched when he removed the decayed area, and to take paracetamol and ibuprofen for a few days to keep on top of the pain. I queried it, saying the pain hadn't been bad enough to need medication before, and that's when he said: "it's normal for pain to get worse before it gets better after dental treatment."

So it's been 3 and a half days and the pain is keeping me up at night. I can't chew on that side of my mouth and can't drink any water from the tap as that temperature is too cold, the tooth feels super sensitive and sore. The pain is ten times worse than before I paid this guy £200 for dental treatment.

Is he right, is this normal? Or has he caused a ton of damage to my tooth and charged me for the privilege?

If it's the latter one, what do I do now?

I'd really appreciate any thoughts, especially if anyone has dental training or knowledge! Thanks

NOT normal. Sounds awful. I would ring 111 for advice if I were you. You may need to go to A & E if he has damaged your nerve.

He sounds hideous. Sorry you are suffering this. Dental pain is nasty!

No a medic, but yes: pain can get worse before it gets better.

I had to have two very deep fillings recently (the alternative would have been removal) and I think it was probably about two/three months before it was okay.

Nerve damage is very likely and as nerve tissue is the slowest to regenerate, it will take time to heal and recover.

Salt mouth washes and Sensodyne toothpaste (rubbed directly on to the tooth) will help, but otherwise it's time.

I am not a dentist but have had many many fillings and seen a number of dentists and no, that doesn’t fit with my experience at all. I am sorry but think you had better seek another opinion.

Not normal to be in increasing pain after ime. Get another dentists opinion.

Can be normal - why not give it some time and see if it settles?

@HelloFrostyMorning WTF would OP need to go to A&E?? What do you think A&E will do???

If OP is concerned she can always call the dentist and ask them to explain again and say she’s in pain.

I've had this once. The pain settled after a day or two. So whilst not normal, not unusual either.

@ItWorriesMeThisKindofThing

I am not a dentist but have had many many fillings and seen a number of dentists and no, that doesn’t fit with my experience at all. I am sorry but think you had better seek another opinion.

This. Call 111. Don't waste your time with this dentist @WoolyMammoth55 ... he sounds like an idiot.

Ignore people trying to downplay your suffering.

A&E???! Jeez

That is normal with a deep filling. I had one and the pain was really, really severe afterwards. Much worse than prior. And the dentist warned me this might be the case. If it doesn't settle you'll need a root canal unfortunately.

Keep taking paracetamol and ibuprofen alternately 2 hourly (don't excess daily max for each) - don't wait for it to start to hurt, take them 2 hourly regardless. If that doesn't work get done with codeine from the pharmacy.

However I would see a different dentist anyway as it shouldn't have been that rough with you while doing a filing.

Agree with everything @TooManyPJs said

I’ve had deep fillings that have hurt a lot afterwards sometimes for a few weeks - you could still get advice from another dentist though as it doesn’t sound like a good experience anyway

@HelloFrostyMorning

NOT normal. Sounds awful. I would ring 111 for advice if I were you. You may need to go to A & E if he has damaged your nerve.

He sounds hideous. Sorry you are suffering this. Dental pain is nasty!

A&E? For what? To try to magically heal nerve tissue damage?

MN really has the ability to trawl the depths of stupid sometimes.

Thanks all for the replies.

@AffIt and @TooManyPJs, it's reassuring that you've also experienced this and it did eventually die down! Can I ask if you were warned ahead of the procedure that the pain would be worse afterwards?

Part of my shock and disbelief about the whole thing is that the first time he mentioned it was as I was leaving the chair, numb and a bit shaken up! The initial consultation where he took the x-ray was 2 weeks before the filling and it was never mentioned. I'd have thought the x-ray would have shown how deep the decay was and how close to the nerve?

Obviously in the NHS hospital system if you are having a procedure you sign the little form to say that you consent to the risks and understand the possible outcomes, etc. This guy just described it as a replacement filling and no mention of severe pain afterwards was made until the deed was done.

I'm just knocking back my last daily dose of paracetamol and the pain is radiating through my cheekbone and all along to my ear... If I'd known it would be like this I would not have consented to have it done :(

No she told me while in the chair that the filling was very deep and afterwards about the possible pain. Mine did die down after a few weeks but not completely and I had to have a root canal which failed and then an implant but hopefully yours is more straightforward!!

Not normal, fillings do not hurt afterwards at all. Sounds like he’s damaged the nerve, you may need a root canal.

Dentist here. Wondering what eventually happened? Hope the tooth has settled down on its own accord?

What you are experiencing is pulpitis, which is inflammation of the nerve tissue deep within the tooth. The deeper and more various the tooth is, the greater the likelihood of pulpitis there is. Usually we can predict this by looking at the radiograph but not always.
If we come across a cavity that's close to the nerve, we have two choices/ remove the nerve and initiate root canal treatment, or place a type of cap/lining over the top of the nerve to protect it, ( like a barrier) and hope that it won't flare up.
There are two types of pulpitis, reversible and irreversible. The reversible does feel like post treatment toothache, is usually helped by painkillers, and eventually settles on its own. On occasion the nerve however can die off slowly and further treatment required anyway.
Irreversible pulpitis is incredibly sore and cN only be resolved by root canal treatment or extraction.
One thing I should make clear is that if pulpitis occurs, it is NOT the dentist's fault. It occurs because the decay is deep, or there has been previous trauma, or a tooth has been neglected due to lack of care, poor diet or failure to attend routinely. It would be extremely unlikely that a dentist would accidentally or purposely and unnecessarily hit a nerve. Dentists would really rather not have the hassle of having to do root canal treatment trust me.
Please don't go to A&E as suggested upthread. Awful advice.

And also, just a thought, but it sounds as though the dentist perhaps needs to work on their communication skills, as all this above should have been explained, especially after charging that amount of money for a filling. That is an obscene amount of money