If you are suffering from a toothache and headache, it is natural to marvel if both symptoms are related. Throbbing pain or swelling in or around your tooth or gum. Usually, abscessed tooth pain is an indication that something is wrong with your gums or tooth. Perhaps your toothache is causing your headache, or both may be an indication of a serious underlying health problem such as a sinus infection. Read on to find out the answer to this question: “Can toothache cause headache?”
A dental abscess is a pocket of pus forming in various parts of your tooth due to a bacterial infection. This infection can occur due to injury to the mouth, medical complications that impact your immune system, or poor dental hygiene. If a tooth infection is not promptly treated, a patient may also develop a migraine, a throbbing one-sided headache associated with nausea or vomiting. An abscessed tooth can cause moderate to severe pain, which can even radiate to your ear or neck. If left untreated, abscessed tooth pain can graduate into a severe, life-threatening condition. Therefore, an abscessed tooth should instantly be treated by an experienced dentist.
Can a Tooth Infection Cause Dizziness?
If you had an infected tooth in the past, you understand how painful it can be. But do you know a tooth infection can affect your overall health and body in unexpected ways? When left untreated, gum, tooth, and mouth infections can make you feel lightheaded; use your balance to make you feel dizzy. This indicates that the infection has spread and started to affect the nerves, which impacts your balance.
Toothaches are painful conditions that can occur due to various reasons. While most common signs of a tooth abscess include gum tenderness, a sore jaw, swelling, or throbbing pain, other complications may be experienced, including vertigo and headache. Certain conditions and diseases may lead to dizziness when experiencing abscessed tooth pain, as can the adverse effects of specific medications. Dizziness after root canal procedure and extraction of the wisdom tooth are also major culprits.
Can Toothache Cause Migraine?
There are several reasons behind aching tooth-like impacted wisdom teeth, cracked teeth, and cavities, to mention a few. If such conditions remain untreated, a patient may develop migraine (one-sided severe headache) that may cause you to vomit or have nausea.
Experts suggest that the way toothaches cause migraines are closely connected to the trigeminal nerve. The nerve offers sensation to your face, including your lower and upper hip, gums, and teeth. Since medical experts strongly believe that the trigeminal nerve plays a critical role in migraine pathogenesis, it makes sense to say that an underlying tooth infection could impact the supplying trigeminal nerve branch and, as a result, cause a migraine.
Can Toothache Cause Ear Pain?
Coming down with an earache or toothache can wreak havoc in your daily schedule, not to name the pain these ailments can bring. But can a toothache make your ear hurt? Your nose, throat, and ears are connected via a delicate network of passageways, canals, and tubes. That’s why diagnosing a problem in these areas calls for an assessment of the others.
Ear pain can emanate from dental problems. Your teeth, jaw and gums are inextricably connected to your ears. Thus ear pain can be an indication of an underlying dental problem. This explains why maintaining proper oral health is crucial for the quality of your life. You may note that undergoing restorative treatments or regular cleanings reduces the occurrence of ear pain. If you search for relief for ear pain caused by dental problems, schedule an appointment with an experienced dentist today.
Check our recent post: “5 Most Common Dental Problems and Their Treatment”
Dental Problems that Can Cause Headaches and Dizziness
Did you know that persistent or constant pain in your head can be treated more effectively by your dentist than your general physician? The cause of headaches is often elusive; they can range from mildly irritating to unrelentingly painful. Since frequent pain can adversely affect the quality of your life, if you experience persistent pain that does not clear even after being treated by a physician, you may wish to see your dentist.
Dizziness is the feeling of being woozy, unbalanced, or lightheaded. However, it is not a disease but rather a symptom of various dental problems or health disorders. Here are dental problems that can lead to headaches and dizziness:
Root Canal Complications
Complications from root canal treatment may result in headaches and feelings of dizziness or vertigo. Problems usually occur when dealing with an inexperienced dentist or when the root canal equipment breaks. Severely-curved canals may lead to incomplete feeling. Canal perforation is another challenge, as is overfilling. Infections coming from canal procedure can cause dizziness; however, reaction to specific pain medications following such procedure may also cause lightheadedness or dizziness.
Bruxism and Temporomandibular Joint Disorder
Teeth grinding (Bruxism) and TMJD are two problems in the dental world that can cause frequent headaches. This problem occurs as a result of problems with your jaw and surrounding muscles, and most of the time is the result of an injury to the joint. Anything from sports trauma to whiplash or even something small such as opening your mouth too wide for long in your dentist’s office can cause the temporomandibular joint disorder.
Check our detail post on “How to Stop Clenching Teeth and Grinding (Bruxism)”
If you notice that you usually wake up with a headache that vanishes shortly after rising, you may probably be grinding your teeth. Apart from above mentioned dental problems, it is also worth mentioning that headache pain or dizziness can be caused by more familiar issues like tooth infection, an abscess, or cavities.
See Your Dentist Today for Toothache and Headache
If your tooth pain is severe or is a result of a severe medical condition, see your dentist to have it treated properly. Besides, you need to maintain proper oral hygiene to prevent tooth infections or decay. This implies brushing your teeth twice a day and flossing daily. Don’t keep silent with your pain. Even a headache is something that a dentist can be able to assist you with. If you think that your headache and tooth pain are related, book an appointment online with Dr. William Fitzgerald or call us at 615-689-7582 to regain your healthy smile today!
