When it comes to sensitive teeth, it is important to know the anatomy of teeth. There are three basic layers.
The innermost layer is the pulp. The pulp is inside the root canal, which contains blood vessels, connective tissue and the nerve of the tooth.
The middle layer is the dentin. Dentin is about the same hardness as bone. Pores run through the dentin from the pulp to the outer surface.
Cells inside the pores are responsible for sensing cold. Enamel covers the part of the tooth that is normally visible, the crown.
Healthy enamel insulates the rest of the tooth from mild sensations of heat, cold, sweet and sour. A lot of people that complain of having sensitive teeth have caused it from clenching and grinding their teeth at night.
This is far more common than most people realize, and it can easily cause patients to have sensitive teeth all throughout the day. Most people with sensitive teeth will believe that they have a cavity.
That is possible. Small to moderate cavities will cause teeth to be sensitive to cold and to sweet flavors.
The treatment is to see a dentist to treat small decay with a filling or larger decay with root canal treatment and a crown or extraction. Gum recession will cause mild to moderate sensitivity.
Loss of gum tissue occurs as a result of brushing too hard, gum disease or age. The simplest treatment for mild sensitivity due to a small amount of gum loss is using a desensitizing toothpaste.
Regular fluoride applications will both strengthen and desensitize teeth. Look for a high concentration fluoride paste. Use this kind of toothpaste in place of your usual toothpaste.
Use desensitizing toothpaste for about a month, then once or twice a week to maintain the effect. High-concentration fluoride paste may replace regular toothpaste once or twice a day.
Dentists correct more severe gum loss with surgery. There are many techniques to move gum tissue to cover exposed tooth root surface. This is the most natural and long lasting treatment for gum loss.
Loss of enamel is another common cause of sensitivity. Eating causes slow enamel loss.
Don't worry. Under normal circumstances there is enough enamel to last for a lifetime.
Unfortunately, some people grind their teeth excessively. Enamel will not stand up to this for long.
The simple solution is to wear a mouth guard to prevent the teeth from contacting each other. More serious grinding will require attention from a dentist with experience in restoring the way teeth should bite together.
Clenching and grinding is a problem with so many patients, that it is usually one of the first things dentists look into when a patient comes into the office complaining of sensitive teeth.
When a person grinds his teeth night after night, that can really be damaging to their teeth and cause a variety of problems both immediately and in the future.
Teeth can easily become aggravated due to nighttime issues, and that can easily cause the teeth to become sensitive to factors like hot or cold temperatures, or even sweet foods. Also, any sort of pressure in the mouth is something that their teeth can become quite irritated by when they are functioning during the daytime.
And this can all simply be caused by nightly grinding sessions that patients are doing while they are sleeping, often without even realizing what is going on each night. The percentage of patients with sensitive teeth who also happen to be nighttime grinders and clenchers is quite high.
Many people don't even realize they are doing this at night. So what is usually recommended to those patients is that they wear a nighttime appliance in their mouths to prevent further damage from the clenching and grinding they are doing at night.
Author Resource:-
Terry Daniels is a former dental assistant and has authored hundreds of articles relating to oral health and dentist in Victorville, CA. He has been a guest dental lecturer for over 15 years.
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