Fifty Plus (50+) - 50+ tooth problems part #2 -- Amazing discovery

The tooth pain -- make that jaw pain -- saga continues. The excruciating pain comes and goes with no particular rhyme or reason why it starts at all, and it stops in its own painfully sweet timing.

However.......... I made an amazing discovery over the weekend. Ice water brings instant relief.

During our ride on Saturday the group stopped for brunch. My jaw was seriously aching when we sat down at the table. The day was warm and I wanted to stay hydrated for the ride back, so I took a sip of the ice water through a straw, expecting the coldness to hit the nerve and send me through the roof. Instead, the pain immediately disappeared!!! Huh! I thought, so I took another sip when the pain returned -- no more pain! I sipped throughout the meal and noticed that every sip of ice water brought the immediate relief I was desperately searching for.

At home, I filled a tall glass with water and put it in the fridge to keep it cold. For the remainder of the weekend I periodically took sips whenever the pain returned, always with the same results. This is amazing, I thought. Ice cream makes my teeth hurt, but ice water relieves this torture?

Today at work, I wondered about this strange discovery so I Googled "toothache relieved by cold" and, long story short, ended up finding the on-line Merck Manual's page on toothache. It includes a paragraph that perfectly describes my experience (except for the opioids part):

Irreversible pulpitis causes toothache without stimulation or lingering pain after stimulation. Commonly, the patient has difficulty identifying the involved tooth. The physician can identify the tooth by placing ice on each tooth in the area and removing the ice once the patient feels pain. In healthy teeth, the pain stops almost immediately. Pain lingering more than a few seconds indicates irreversible pulpitis. Uncommonly, cold actually lessens symptoms (suppurative pulpitis), and the patient may present with a glass of ice water from which he regularly sips. Analgesics are needed until a dentist can perform root canal therapy or extraction. A patient who is seen frequently for emergencies but who never obtains definitive dental treatment may be seeking opioids.I called the endodontists' office right away. He said that the nerve is probably dying and giving off a gas that is relieved by the ice water. He said patients have arrived for root canal surgery carrying a cup of ice water they sip for relief.

Fortunately, he said there are other tests that can be done to identify the tooth and that they will be sure it's the correct tooth before they drill.

Meanwhile, I put a pair of cloves between my cheek and gum and I feel pretty good right now.

So........... file that in your memory in case you or someone you know has severe tooth and/or jaw pain in a tooth that's difficult to identify -- take a sip of ice water and see if it helps.

Yen, glad you made the discovery! That is a miserable type of pain and it can lead to a nasty infection.
Get it taken care of soon! I think a new pair of Sidi's would help ease the pain and anxiety of the root canal. What do you think?

By the way! How are the opioids?

Hey Fred -- Yes, this is a most miserable pain. It feels like a hammer hits my jaw as hard as possible..... then hits it again. And again.

I already have the Sidis...... unfortunately, no relief in my jaw but my feet are happy. :)

Haven't taken any opioids.... yet. I always take a very conservative approach to medication, so I had to be desperate when I took ibuprofen 3x today -- very unusual for me and I have to be in a LOT of pain to take it at the minimum frequency recommended on the bottle. If I get desperate, Hubby has some leftover Vicodin which will put me out like a light.... but only if I can't sleep and I start considering hanging myself :eek:

I have an appt. with the endodontists on Aug 14... if I don't think I can make it that long I'll ask them to squeeze me in, but I don't relish the thought of a root canal squeezed in, and that date is only to re-evaluate, not to operate.

Yen, forget about being tough! Having gone through it myself I vote for get it done tomorrow!

Been there ... done that with a wisdom tooth. Ice water was by far the best analgesic I found for the problem.

I've had, sadly, a number of root canals. They're not fun, but they're a lot better than letting the pain continue. Get it done ASAP.

not to beat a dead horse but my bruxism caused nerve trauma ---> to nerve death---->root canal (7 to be exact). Not pleasant but ..... so don't discount the mouthguard if you're grinding ....... Also had an experience of a root canal gone bad....pain like i never imagined....and also of a tooth with a "hidden" root....not usual but couldn't be seen with normal x-rays...only discovered when filling the canals and I could feel pain..... ;-)

I'm glad you've found some temporary relief for the pain. Don't hesitate to call the dentist for an earlier appointment if it gets more severe.

I've had, sadly, a number of root canals. They're not fun, but they're a lot better than letting the pain continue. Get it done ASAP.


+1

Three years ago I had to go on a weeklong conference The morning I left started with a dull ache in my jaw. Later that day, on the plane, it was getting bad. That night when I had some soup, I almost hit the ceiling because the pain was so bad. Heat made it worse, cold made it better. I gutted it out for 5 days taking 4 Ibuprophen every 4 hours and getting only about 4 hours of sleep a night. The pain was terrible. When I got home I had an emergency root canal and was on antibiotics for a week.

zonatandem is right: Cloves work!!!!!!!!!!! I had relatively (operative word is relatively) little pain today and when I did I inserted 2 cloves between the teeth and cheek. After 15-20 minutes the pain was gone. Yesterday, using ibuprofen, it took 3 hours for the pain to subside. The cloves worked with every flare-up. It's been a pretty comfortable day today.

Anecdote? Placebo effect? Who knows.... but it seems to work.

zonatandem is right: Cloves work!!!!!!!!!!! I had relatively (operative word is relatively) little pain today and when I did I inserted 2 cloves between the teeth and cheek. After 15-20 minutes the pain was gone. Yesterday, using ibuprofen, it took 3 hours for the pain to subside. The cloves worked with every flare-up. It's been a pretty comfortable day today.

Anecdote? Placebo effect? Who knows.... but it seems to work.

I have no evidence other than my own anecdotal but yeah, they work.

And they make your breath smell amazing.

Glad you found some relief.

Yen:
Cloves??? You betcha!
Placebo effect? Who cares! You got results just like I did.
Have also read that some dentists use a clove-based paste to relieve toothaches.
Heck, paid just a buck for cloves, not $125 for a dentists 'expertise'!
Pedal on!
Rudy and Kay/zonatandem

Rudy -- Pain today was again just minimal (by comparison). I stuck 3 cloves in my cheek this afternoon.... a little too spicy, I had to take them out after a short while! But honest to goodness this is the second day of using the cloves, and the second day of minimal and very tolerable pain. The endo docs may have a good laugh when I go back but hey, they may be working! The area is very sensitive to heat .... I have to let my morning oatmeal and coffee cool off to almost room temp.

The endo doc told me on the phone that if the nerve is dying, the pain may completely disappear after the nerve is dead...... so, that may be happening.

Also.......... if my teeth are NOT hurting, then ice water does hurt. It seems to make only hurting teeth feel good.

Fascinating!

Sheesh, I thought this was the 50+ group. Didn't any of you ever see Marathon Man?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XW0C3eyjeCQ&feature=related

If you've got any guts you'll watch this all the way through. Pertinent matter is at 3:40.

I fast-forwarded to 3:30 and watched the rest of it. Right now, I don't want to watch torture that involves the mouth or teeth. But thanks for the reminder.... I'd forgotten that particular moment in the scene.