Lately, every morning when I wake up my jaw and teeth hurt like mad. I can’t see anything wrong with the teeth or gums. Is this a symptom of oral cancer? Cancer runs in my family, not this kind in particular but a variety of others. I’m trying not to panic. Would this be a dental emergency?
Macy
Dear Macy,
Don’t panic. If you see a dentist regularly, they should be doing checks for oral cancer. I wouldn’t consider this a dental emergency necessarily and I would be surprised if it was any type of oral cancer. In fact, I think you are dealing with bruxism. You need to bear in mind that I haven’t seen you and am going purely on the symptoms you mentioned above.
Pain in the jaw and teeth is often caused because we grind or clench our teeth in our sleep without realizing it. Your dentist would normally notice signs of this because it wears down the surfaces of your teeth. This could be a fairly new habit for you which would explain why your dentist hadn’t mentioned it yet. Maybe there is new stress in your life which can be causing it.
Bruxism Can Lead to a Dental Emergency
When you are grinding or clenching your teeth it damages them. This can lead to you cracking a tooth or causing it to come loose. Putting off treatment for this can even lead to an extreme procedure known as a full-mouth reconstruction where all your teeth have to be crowned to fix the bite.
Truthfully, it is much easier and affordable to deal with this now. This is especially true because the solution is so easy. Your dentist can fit you with a night guard. This is a simple custom-fitted mouthpiece which you will wear while you sleep. It takes the pressure off of your teeth, protecting them from the damage they would normally incur. Because your dentist fits it to your particular bite, they are very comfortable.
This blog is brought to you by Salem Dentist Dr. Randall Burba.