If you feel severe oral pain or other jarring symptoms in your smile, you know you need to seek emergency dental care as soon as possible. However, even minor changes in your oral health could point to a serious dental problem.
You may think you can ignore or tolerate slight dental symptoms. But they could be early signs of a major dental issue. Give your dentist a call about any new concerns that arise in your teeth, gums, or elsewhere in your mouth.
You can feel more encouraged to take action like this when you understand the risks that come from delaying this dental evaluation. Read on to find three seemingly small dental concerns that could point to larger oral health problems requiring urgent attention from a dentist.
Tooth Sensitivity
Have you ever felt a jolt of pain when biting into a food item? This intermittent but sharp pain is known as tooth sensitivity. Though the sensation often fades as soon as you remove the food or other stimulus, you should not try to endure this oral discomfort.
Tooth sensitivity occurs when the enamel, the outer layer of the tooth, wears down or erodes to expose underlying nerves. The pain happens when a stimulus touches these nerves, transmitting a pain signal to the brain.
When the interior of the tooth is exposed due to weakened enamel, the entire tooth becomes vulnerable to many dental dangers. In fact, some serious dental concerns, like tooth decay, can cause this symptom. So tell your dentist if you feel pain of any kind in your tooth, including sensitivity.
Bleeding Gums
Your gums, the connective tissue keeping your teeth in place in the mouth, might bleed for acute reasons, such as harsh teeth brushing. But if your gums seem to bleed frequently or on a chronic basis, this is abnormal.
Bleeding, along with tenderness and swelling, are symptoms of an infection in the gums called periodontal disease. This infection allows bacteria to eat away at gum tissue. If it spreads, it can damage the teeth and jawbone to the point that the teeth fall out.
Gum disease is easier to treat when diagnosed in its early stage, gingivitis. So seek periodontal therapy as soon as you can to avoid irreversible damage to your smile.
Bad-Smelling Breath
Bad breath can affect the best of us after a strong meal or if you neglect your oral hygiene routine. Commonly, this unpleasant smell will go away when you rinse or brush away plaque and lingering food particles in your mouth. But if bad breath becomes chronic, it could be a symptom of a larger dental problem.
A foul odor might develop in your mouth due to gum disease or tooth decay as bacteria collect in your smile. If allowed to advance, you could face grave consequences for your oral health. So do not ignore the problem. Schedule a dental evaluation as soon as you can.