Dental pain question - need to crowdsource

[Anonymous]

I just got my first filling (redo of an old filling) in 20 years.

It's been aching for a solid week now. Not pain, just a dull pain of 1-2 with air sensitivity. This means I need to take ibuprofen and even this small amount of pain is exhausting.

I had a new dentist who is pretty new. Excellent ivy league credentials, but new at dentistry comparatively.

1. Should I go back and have him fix? I've read it could be bite but my bite feels the same.

2. Should I go back and have the elder owner dentist look and fix?

3. Should I go to our "old" dentist who is a woman (not that it matters) and never found cavities on my teeth for 10 years. She filled my kids' cavities though and no complaints. Should I track her down?

Thanks for your gut instincts on this! I need to stop ruminating and call tomorrow.

[Anonymous]

You might need to go to an endodentist. Why did you have to redo the old filling? Sounds like an infection? (I’m speculating.)

[Anonymous]

Go to the dentist who did the filling and get your bite checked. Most likely, it's off. Why did you replace the filling? Was it cracked? I have a 30 year old filling and no dentist has tried to get me to replace it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You might need to go to an endodentist. Why did you have to redo the old filling? Sounds like an infection? (I’m speculating.)

I doubt the infection would flair that quickly. Op, do you have swelling on your gum or pus?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You might need to go to an endodentist. Why did you have to redo the old filling? Sounds like an infection? (I’m speculating.)

Possibly this.

Also, many years ago, I had some tooth pain after fillings. Then I went on a ski trip and had bad rental boots. The foot pain "got rid of" the dental pain. On the third day, I switched boots, got rid of the foot pain, and the dental pain was gone.

Long way of saying you could have a irritated nerve and it may yet settle down.

[Anonymous]

Zero reason to give gender of dentist.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I just got my first filling (redo of an old filling) in 20 years.

It's been aching for a solid week now. Not pain, just a dull pain of 1-2 with air sensitivity. This means I need to take ibuprofen and even this small amount of pain is exhausting.

I had a new dentist who is pretty new. Excellent ivy league credentials, but new at dentistry comparatively.

1. Should I go back and have him fix? I've read it could be bite but my bite feels the same.

2. Should I go back and have the elder owner dentist look and fix?

3. Should I go to our "old" dentist who is a woman (not that it matters) and never found cavities on my teeth for 10 years. She filled my kids' cavities though and no complaints. Should I track her down?

Thanks for your gut instincts on this! I need to stop ruminating and call tomorrow.

Even a slight high point could throw off your bite, leading to pain. It's best to see the dds who did the filling. If it's the bite, it's a simple fix. They may take an xray if the bite is ok. It's also possible that the work irritated a nerve or tendons in your jaw. Best to have it evaluated and try not to worry as it's likely ok.

[Anonymous]

Thank you for the advice so far!
And for those telling me not to worry.
It was the dentist who poked the tooth, it was sticky, and said I had a cavity near my old filling.

There was no infection or pain before. I don't think there's already infection from a filling gone wrong. I have plenty of other fillings and they don't need replacing. I think this one is just an outlier.

[Anonymous]

Did dentist do a lot of that tap tap tap with carbon paper to check high spots for bite? They likely need to do more. And having older dentist look might be useful. Ours was a tap tap tap artiste.

[Anonymous]

So I will say I just got a similar procedure a year ago, dentist replaced what was probably a 25-year-old filling. I also had some sensitivity and discomfort for about a week after, but it was not bad enough to take ibuprofen.

When I googled it, it said that some mild pain and discomfort and sensitivity is normal as you get used to the new material in your mouth. You could have it looked at if you really think the pain is bad though. I think mine lasted about a week or so before it settled and I haven’t had any issues since.