When you roll over to the side, does the side of your face begin to pound in pain? This is known as positional tooth pain and can be associated with infected teeth.
That’s why it’s so important to reach out to a dentist in Los Angeles as soon as you feel any dental pain—even when you think it’s insignificant. Dental pain is just the beginning of your problems when you’re thinking about the health of your smile.
Learn more about how you can save your natural smile when you contact your dentist early on about your dental pain. Let’s explore how to keep all your permanent teeth for years to come in this week’s blog post.
What happens when you ignore tooth pain?
Dental pain is the first of many signs of a variety of dental problems. When it’s persistent and developing into more excruciating pain, that’s one of the signs of a tooth infection. Tooth infections, or an abscess, is when infectious materials were able to penetrate the layers of your tooth and reach its extremely sensitive tooth pulp.
Here are some of the other symptoms that could point to an infection of the tooth:
- An unpleasant taste in your mouth
- The presence of liquid or puss in the affected area
- A dark spot in the smile
- Dental pain throughout the smile
- Positional tooth pain when you lay down
How can you save your natural teeth?
There are two options that you face when you have an infected tooth: extraction or root canal to save the natural tooth. Your emergency dentist in Los Angeles will always opt to save your natural tooth. Many patients may lean more towards the extraction option because they fear root canal therapy, but in reality, you might face more problems like how to replace your tooth once it’s been extracted.
Root canals work to clean out the infectious materials from your smile, relieving your tooth pain. This is done in a modern way with numbing local anesthetic and even sedation if you feel anxious about your procedure.
You can expect to have your tooth completely cleared of dental bacteria and infection—even extracting the inflamed tooth pulp—and filled with a biocompatible material known as gutta percha. Then, the tooth will be sealed from future infections with a gorgeous, tooth-colored dental crown.
How can you get started?
If you have dental pain, the best thing that you can do is work to relieve it with the help of a dentist. Call your local office for a visit so that your dentist can evaluate the cause of your pain. If needed, your dentist will prepare you for your root canal procedure, explain what to expect, and also give advice for post-care.
About Our Office
Here at Westside Dental Associates, your dentist wants to help you keep your teeth for years to come for a lifetime. This means that when you encounter a dental problem, you can rely on our office to give you the best recommendations to save your smile. Give us a call to schedule your next visit.