Any dentist on here who can advise me..my dentist said I have to put up with the pain?

[Mammajay]

A week ago I had a checkup and told the dentist I was getting a sharp pain whenever I ate on one side and the pain was between two lower back teeth. She said I had gum erosion ( I am an older patient!)and painted some coating on the lower edges of the teeth. No mention of hope this works. There was no change in the pain so after 5 days I contacted the surgery and they told me to go back in. She showed me the x-ray taken on the previous visit and said there was no decay and it might be a hairline fracture which she couldn't see and therefore couldn't treat. I joked about eating on one side for years! I then asked whether I was using the most suitable sensodine and she gave me some duraphat toothpaste to try( she wasn't suggesting that until I asked). No invitation to go back if the pain doesn't improve. My dentist is NHS and I have been going to her for years. She is very nice and I have mostly been very happy with my treatment but don't quite know what to do now. I get tense whenever I eat. Even chewing a room temperature tomato made it hurt like hell. I would be really grateful for any advice.

Bonjela is good for gum pain

I have this too, I have had to eat on one side for years due to the pain. I feel for you.

It is looking like you may have cracked tooth syndrome. It is really difficult to diagnose because you can't see it in the mouth and you can't see on x rays.

The problem is to treat it means , normally, quite radical treatment like crowning and/or root treatment and even then it's not guaranteed that you might not lose the tooth.

For this reason most dentists will try to eliminate all the other possibilities and treatments before drilling fillings out and investigating/treating cracked cusp.

If the pain is getting worse then phone back. However it can take two weeks ish for sensitivity treatments to work.

Hairline cracks mean root canal usually. Which I think is Band 2 on the NHS which isn't expensive, but privately can cost £500+ so it essentially means a loss to the NHS practices doing it. So that might explain to reluctance.

Be persistent, ask for a referral for a CBCT scan (which still may not show it) then ask for root canal or for the tooth to be accessed (open and dress) to see the issue.

Either that or have an extraction. But you need to be sure which tooth it is.

You cannot get a referral for a cbct scan on the NHS for a potentially fractured tooth.

You could pay the 90 quid that a private dentist charges for a first appointment and see what they think could be done? The NHS do offer root canal as Im about to have one - don't get it taken out as that is bad for the rest of your mouth.

Perhaps this needs a second opinion

and - having just had a private quote for root canal it was not 500 !! 1400 more like!

If they can’t see the crack they don’t know which tooth to treat or where to drill. Basically it will either get better or will get worse but more obvious where the issue is. If it stays the same for months it’s likely dentine hypersensitivity due to erosion/recession and can’t really be treated but isn’t a sign of any major issues so Better to keep the teeth?

Why is having a tooth taken out bad for rest of mouth?
My partner demanded dentist remove one of his teeth and it was the best decision he could have made. Pain free and no problems with rest of mouth for years

Thanks for all the replies. I am fairly sure it is the back heavily filled tooth. Root canal is all private around here..one thousand pounds plus. I think I will keep using the duraphat, assuming that is better than any of the sensodine options, and hope that works. If not I will go back and pay another seventy pounds and ask her to try replacing the filling. If that doesn't work. I might have it extracted..a grim prospect but so is living with tooth pain.

Doggymummar..what did your dentist try to help remedy the situation?

Just one question someone might have an answer to..I was using sensodine rapid relief and have now swapped to duraphat. Would any sensodine be likely to work better than duraphat if I have a hairline crack My dentist didn't exactly recommend duraphat..it was more an I don't really know but you could try duraphat?

How are you using the toothpaste? My dentist suggested not just brushing with sensodyne, but rubbing a small amount on the receding gum and tooth after brushing, to reduce sensitivity.

my dentist recommended rubbing a sensitive toothpaste on the painful part of my gums at bedtime. It took about a week but it has really reduced the pain.

Gosh it's been a decade or more now, I've had crowns and root canals now I just live with it by not eating on that side.

I had this too and my dentist advised that I could go for a root canal but that if it was a crack causing significant pain there was a risk that the tooth would shatter during drilling resulting in need for extraction. After a bit of thought and being a nervous patient, I went straight for extraction. Not regretted it. Plus, as I could just eat on the other side, I waited for an NHS referral, took 9 months but cost £69 ish (inc some very good drugs ;) )

Having a tooth taken out is bad for the rest of the mouth as teeth support each other's position. Once one is gone, they'll all shuffle about (obviously over time!) and may go out of line.

Thanks for the tip..I have rubbed the toothpaste directly on the teeth where the pain is c152 and cockney salad..were you using duraphat? Doggymummar..that sounds worrying! Jayho..my dentist made no recommendation. I remember about thirty years ago I kept getting toothache..not Sharp like this..but my very good dentist could find no cause in spite of several visits. Then when the pain got bad and I saw a different dentist she said she had to take the filling out to see what was happening and she found a crack which she filled..end of pain. Second dentist was Australian..perhaps she had been taught to use a different approach. I am really hoping the toothpaste works which is why I am trying to find out whether duraphat is better than sensodine.

I had this last yr, was a hairline crack I knew which tooth & could feel it with tongue although not visible to dentist or on x-ray. Already had a large old filling so was drilled out & needed a porcelain cap done (private cost approx £500) as dentist advised this would be best long term option. Was warned I may need root canal but luckily caught early so this was avoided. Not had any further issues.

I could have written your post OP. The crack in my molar goes right down past the gumline.
I've made the decision to have the tooth taken out - but as a nervous patient I'm going to pay (gulp) for sedation and a private extraction. My NHS dentist thought that was the best option but couldn't offer sedation.

Sensodyne is 1450ppm fluoride content and Duraphat is either 2800ppm or 5000ppm depending on which one you've got. My dentist raves about the stuff (probably because she charges 11 quid a bloody tube!)

My dh had occasional excruciating tooth pain if he bit down on anything hard when eating. He saw a dentist who said it was a chronic dental pain and basically to put up with it. Well, they don't know him and he went back and then after a further X-ray it showed he had a crack right down the middle of the tooth! He had it removed and the pain was all gone.

I've just had one 2 weeks ago for £500. It took 3 visits too.

I just use regular sensitive toothpaste but now that I’ve heard about duraphat I’m interested in getting some.

Duraphat is only available on prescription and is licenced for treatment of decay rather than sensitivity .
If a tooth is cracked it will do nothing at all .
If you have a tooth that's sensitive because of exposed roots it can take time to settle down . The idea is to rub the toothpaste onto the tooth last thing at night and leave on , dont rinse out, so it has a chance to "soak in" and build up layers.