Plenty of dental issues can feel like no big deal, at least at first.
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Plenty → feel → deal
The symptoms don’t always hurt and may not even catch your attention.
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symptoms → hurt → attention
“A lot of times patients don’t realise they have a problem in their mouth because they don’t look so closely,” says Steven Katz, immediate past president of the American Association of Endodontists.
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Katz → realise → Endodontists
Even a toothache might come and go, Katz says, leading some people to put off dealing with it.
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Katz → come → it
And making a dentist appointment for a painless problem – for instance, gums that bleed when you floss – can feel like more of a hassle than it’s worth.
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it → make → hassle
But seemingly minor dental symptoms often signal infections that, if left untreated, can progress into more complex problems, says Richard M. Lipari, a cosmetic dentist in New York.
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Lipari → signal → York
These issues can also require more costly treatment and additional visits to repair.
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issues → require → treatment
Some changes in your mouth can even be early warning signs of disease elsewhere in the body, Lipari adds.
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Lipari → add → body
Below are five tooth and gum symptoms that you may be tempted to ignore but shouldn’t, for the sake of your oral and overall health.
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you → tempt → health
“There’s no amount of pain in your teeth that should be considered normal,” Katz says.
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Katz → ’ → teeth
It starts when bacteria combine with saliva and food particles to form a sticky film of plaque on a tooth’s surface.
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bacteria → start → surface
The bacteria feed on sugars and starches and produce acids that erode enamel.
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that → feed → enamel
This decay can eventually lead to a cavity – a hole that can cause pain or irritation if it reaches the sensitive inner layers of the tooth.
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it → lead → tooth
About one in three Australian adults aged 15 and over with their own teeth have at least one tooth with untreated dental decay.
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adults → age → decay
The concern is what can happen next: as bacteria move deeper into the tooth, an infection can develop at the root, causing sharp or throbbing pain.
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infection → happen → pain
Over time, it may even spread to the face, neck and underlying bone.
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it → spread → face
Katz cautions that even if your tooth stops hurting, you shouldn’t ignore it.
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you → caution → it
“A lot of patients think, ‘OK, well, I aggravated something, and it’s gone now,’” he says.
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he → think → something
But usually, pain that suddenly lets up is a sign that decay has killed the tooth’s nerve.
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decay → let → nerve
So, the pain can disappear even as the infection gets worse.
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infection → disappear → ?
“That’s when [bacteria] can start to eat away at the bone,” he says.
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he → ’ → bone
While a cavity can be fixed with a simple filling, a dental infection typically requires a root canal.
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infection → fix → canal
During the procedure, a dentist drills into the tooth to clear out the infected pulp and then reseals it and stabilises it with a crown.
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dentist → drill → crown
But if an infection destroys enough bone, the tooth will ultimately have to be removed.
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tooth → destroy → bone
There’s also evidence that untreated dental infections are associated with a higher risk of several conditions beyond the mouth, including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and dementia.
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infections → ’ → diabetes
Bacteria and inflammation around the root of an infected tooth may spill into the bloodstream and reach other parts of the body.
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Bacteria → spill → body
Swollen or bleeding gums
Puffy gums that bleed easily are often a sign of gingivitis, a mild form of gum disease, Lipari says, even if they’re not painful.
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they → bleed → disease
Like cavities, gingivitis is generally caused by plaque buildup.
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gingivitis → cause → buildup
The immune system triggers inflammation in the gums in an attempt to ward off an infection.
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system → trigger → infection
While regular brushing and flossing can remove plaque and reverse gingivitis, if the swelling persists for longer than a couple of weeks, it’s important to see a dentist.
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it → remove → dentist
They can use special tools to remove plaque and its hardened form, called tartar, at and below the gumline.
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They → use → gumline
This helps keep gingivitis from progressing to periodontitis, a more severe form of gum disease.
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This → help → disease
At that stage, inflamed gums can pull away from a tooth, creating a pocket where bacteria can accumulate.
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bacteria → pull → pocket
The gums may become even more swollen or tender, and tooth pain and sensitivity can develop.
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pain → become → ?
Like dental infections, untreated gum disease has also been associated with other serious health issues.
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disease → associate → issues
“The same systemic inflammatory mediators involved in gum disease are linked to conditions like cardiovascular disease and neurodegenerative disorders,” Lipari says.
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Lipari → involve → disease
Although gingivitis is the usual culprit, persistently swollen or bleeding gums can sometimes have other causes, which a dentist can help rule out.
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dentist → bleed → which
For example, bleeding gums are also “strongly associated with diabetes”, Lipari says.
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Lipari → bleed → diabetes
Having high blood sugar can increase the amount of glucose in your saliva, which feeds bacteria in the mouth and increases the risk of plaque buildup.
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which → have → buildup
In very rare cases, gums that frequently bleed could also point to a blood disorder or cancer such as leukemia that interferes with blood clotting, Katz says.
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Katz → bleed → clotting
…and 33 more, not listed.
The Aporia
