Toothache!!

[Ju5tAgirlstandinginfrontofaboy]

Can anyone talk to me about toothache in pregnancy?
I'm 33 weeks and have terrible pain. Been to the dentist twice and he said my teeth look okay and it might be TMJ.
Paracetamol isn't helping and nothing more can be done apparently until the baby is born.
Any advice or previous experience would be very welcome.
I've been and paid for a massage today on my face and head and whilst good at the time hasn't improved anything so far.

If it is TMJ then it can deffo feel like toothache and even worse. I have it.
Paracetamol will do nothing for you.
I'm assuming that he wouldn't have done an X-ray as you're pregnant.
Did he check your teeth throughly and do any tests on the offending tooth?
Does it feel like it's in lots of teeth or a particular tooth?

I take amitryptyline for my tmj as it's the only thing that will suppress the nerve pain I get with it. You can try taking ibuprofen or rubbing an anti inflammatory gel on your jaw/jaw joints that should bring the ache down a bit, otherwise I'd go to your doctors to see if there's anything else.

Chiropractor also may help for tmj.

No don’t take ibruprofen whilst pregnant!

Where exactly does it hurt?
Pregnancy did a number on my teeth... acid from being constantly sick made them very sensitive, gums bled, fillings fell out...

Well it feels like a few teeth, top and bottom.
He looked at them all and just said x rays would have to wait until after birth and the most he can do for me is a gum shield thing.
I need help it's horrible and I cannot go through labour with this pain too....

@FloofenHoofen how long have you had it for if you don't mind me asking?

I feel for you that does sound like TMJ I would take the shield as it'll reduce the clenching/grinding.

I've had it since 2016. Braces bought mine on. They've been off for 2 years now and I still have it daily. Teeth hurt every morning!

Oh no!! Particularly painful in my ear @FloofenHoofen does that sound right?

That's frustrating if he felt xrays were clinically indicated, there's absolutely no reason a pregnant woman can't have dental X-rays.

Definitely don't take ibuprofen. Cocodamol is sometimes prescribed in pregnancy so might be worth seeing your gp?

@Spam88 oh really? He seems to think I can't have xrays?!

Yep sounds exactly right! The ear pain is the worst sometimes.
I get tingly/itchy gums and sensitivity to cold, especially in the joint where it likes to tighten up whenever something cold hits it.

Sorry about the ibuprofen suggestion as well, hasn't realised it's not suitable for pregnancy

I'd take the mouthguard/gum Shield

You can use clove oil or teething gel or baby bonjela

You can take xrays when you're pregnant, I'm a dental radiographer and we don't even ask people if they're pregnant anymore. More likely he didn't have the correct machine to X-ray you with as it's quite a specific machine. Be aware of clenching your jaw, have the mouth guard made, its normally quite expensive so if your dentist is NHS at least you can get it for free atm. Heat sometimes helps so try that too and avoid very hard foods like baguettes, apples etc

You can't use ibuprofen but if it does become completely unbearable they will sometimes prescribe codeine when your pregnant (I've had it for SPD pain as have some other people I know)

Have you had a temperature at all? Or any other signs of infection or is it just pain

Yeah I work in radiation protection. Unless you're xraying someone's abdomen or pelvis then it really doesn't matter if they're pregnant. Try telling that to my dentist though...

I had terrible toothache when pregnant with referred pain so could tell which tooth, hurt top and bottom. They xrayed on my second visit and started root canal - immediate pain relief. They finished it once I'd had the baby. It's the worst pain I've ever been in (including labour). Hope you can get it sorted.

They did prescribe codeine and I took it at night only help me sleep in the week it took to resolve it

If it is TMJ, that is rough...I once had to suck smoothie through a straw because I couldn't open my jaw while everyone else ate Christmas dinner once...

For me, I can tell when it's going to come on because I start grinding my teeth more due to stress. I find relaxation helps and being aware of my grinding helps to lessen it a little!

Hope it gets better!

@yevans thanks for sharing. Just wondering how long it lasted for you and what you did to get rid of it?

When it was really bad it probably lasted about a week and it was strong pain killers and 'jaw rest' (which is quite difficult...) to get rid of it. I was also prescribed a him shield but only wore it a couple of times because I hated it!

It came back less severely once or twice when I was really stressed but barely get it now as my mental health is a lot better and I don't really grind my teeth anymore!

@yevans that's encouraging as today is my last day at work and then I'm on mat leave so I wonder if it will then improve?

Just coming back to update you all.

Turns out my wisdom tooth was in a very sorry state. I had one X-ray and it was numbed and removed.

I know I've been assured that the x ray won't harm my baby but I can't help but worry about it

It will be ok won't it? 🙏🏻

I was in this same situation a few weeks ago! Wisdom tooth was infected due to it having a huge hole in it, my uncle owns a dental practice, he xrayed me and said its fine because they are a lot less powerful than a normal xray and if it was a digital xray machine its even better! So dont worry! I had mine removed also. Going back next week for a filling in another wisdom tooth. X