Bite Problems or problems with how your teeth fit together can occur in different ways. Some bite problems can cause quite a bit of discomfort or pain. You may not even realize that the pain you are experiencing has anything to do with your teeth or bite alignment.
You should be able to bite hard and grind your teeth together in all directions without feeling discomfort in any tooth or jaw area if your bite is good.
Bite Problem Symptoms
Some bite problems can cause pain in the jaw area or your ear, it can cause headaches and even sinus pain. It can at times result in clenching your teeth or grinding your teeth at night. You can even do some serious damage to your teeth if your bite is not properly aligned.
Teeth that are sensitive to cold often get that way by taking an extra pounding if any part of that tooth strikes before the rest of the teeth contact during closure.
If a new filling or crown is too high, it may hurt when you clench your teeth, in which case it is probably not in perfect harmony with a correct bite.
Biting on a “high” filling or crown can cause the tooth to become tender or sore, and often also causes the tooth to be sensitive to cold. In addition to the sore tooth, the jaw muscles may also become sore as they try to avoid striking the high tooth.
Severe Wear
Look for severe wear on your teeth, as this is likely another sign that your bite is not in harmony. If you have worn all the enamel off the edges of your teeth, you will see a darker colored surface. This is dentin and it will wear down seven times faster than the much harder enamel that you’ve already worn through. If you come in, we can evaluate what is causing this wear. It can be especially damaging when it is on your front teeth, so if you notice your lower front teeth have worn down to dentin, have your bite checked. Better yet, don’t wait till all the enamel is gone. Correcting your bite may stop or at least slow down the wear process.
If the wear on your lower front teeth continues the nerves will be exposed and the teeth can become abscessed. Wear that is this severe requires expert correction of the bite as well as restoration of the severely damaged teeth.
There are simple ways to detect when a problem with the bite is causing or at least contributing to pain or discomfort. You can come in to A Perfect Smile Orthodontics for a free consultation or, better yet, an examination and we can determine look into any bite problems and assess the degree of any malocclusion. And we can discuss all options with you to correct the problem.
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