Awful pain behind last molar

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#1 Post by **mel** » Sat Sep 23, 2006 1:24 am

Three days ago I got my elastics, hooking from the inside top to the outside bottoms. (Having lowere jaw surgery in Jan) I have been wearing them just as the doc told me to...today my last molar (with bands) is pushing into my gum behind the tooth and I am experiencing horrible pain. The gum is swollen, bright red and it hurts when I swallow! It's 3:00 am on a Saturday morning and I cannot sleep. Took several ibuprofen and now waiting for some relief. There is no drainage or anything, just PAIN. Any suggestions?

#2 Post by **Lisa65** » Sat Sep 23, 2006 1:50 am

I'm not a doc but it sounds to me like you might have some gunk stuck between that tooth and the gum which is setting up an infection. I've had the same thing happen myself.
Best go and see your dentist and get it looked at and it will probably need to be cleaned out. In the meantime try rinsing your mouth with a weak warm salt water solution which will be soothing.

Hope you soon get it sorted!

#3 Post by **rsprouse** » Sat Sep 23, 2006 8:16 am

If you do not have any sort of abscess then it does sound like a perio problem. If you take a spoon or fork and tap on the tooth does it hurt? Tap on the teeth in front of it for a baseline (or have a friend/spouse do it for you). You will need to clean it out to gain some relief. Since it is the weekend and most dentists are not open then its time to take it into your own hands. You need to brush REALLY well in the area. Spend a few minutes going in small circles all around the area. Brush lightly and down towards the bum line. Take some floss and get around the back of the tooth. Wrap the floss around the tooth and go in and up and down motion. It will also not hurt to rinse with warm salt water or diluted hydrogen peroxide/water. You will be surprised just how quickly you get some relief if you free any food impaction. Also note that it will likely bleed quite a bit while you are in there. This is perfectly normal if you have a food impaction. If you cannot get it clean it is time to call your dentist for an emergency exam.

Good Luck,
Rory

#4 Post by **rsprouse** » Sun Sep 24, 2006 5:53 pm

The likelihood of cement coming off and food replacing it are virtually 0. Even if it did it would not irritate the gums. This is likely a case where there is food/debris trapped beneath the gumline. They may not be able to clean it manually and will need professional intervention (right tool for the job). And decay isn't likely because they will be in so much pain if they don't remedy this sooner rather than later that they will do something about it before it has a chance to decay.

Good Luck,
Rory

#5 Post by **ThisIsMary** » Sun Sep 24, 2006 6:18 pm

I had the same problem. My gum around my molar that was banded became swollen, red, and extremely tender. I brushed like crazy and could never seem to get whatever was stuck in the gum out. This might sound strange but the way I got the food out was, while taking a shower I opened my mouth and let the spray head spray directly on that area in my mouth. After about 5 seconds, a bit of something (I'm guessing food) came out of my mouth (sorry if that sounds gross). After that I followed up with Listerine rinses regularly and the problem cleared up. I hope you feel better soon

#6 Post by **rsprouse** » Mon Sep 25, 2006 5:04 am

Then I was damned unlucky, Rory - it's exactly what happened to me towards the start of this year. Neither my dentist nor my ortho could see what was causing the trouble, but when the band was removed, one quick swoosh of the mouth got rid of the smell I'd been noticing; the gums in the area had cleared up (no more tenderness or puffiness) within less than a week, as had the discomfort in the molar.

Wow that is bad luck!! I wouldn't recommend you head to Vegas anytime soon with luck like that

But I guess bad luck is better than no luck at all. Thanks for the info, you learn something new every day.

Cheers,
Rory

#7 Post by **mel** » Mon Oct 09, 2006 7:44 pm

Thanks to all who posted replies ---my problem is resolved now and this is what happened...I called my ortho and he prescribed anitibiotics for me to take until I could see him on Monday. The more I looked at the gum, I realized that my wisdom tooth on top was biting into my gum and literally "chewing" up the gum tissue! The pain continued until Monday, saw the ortho and he sent me to my dentist to have the wisdom tooth pulled and to remove the excess tissue behind my molar. UGH!

By Thursday, I was feeling much better, just a little sore.

What an ordeal!