Wisdom tooth pain
It arrives at the back of the jaw, it flares and settles on its own schedule, and it has a habit of choosing the worst possible week.
What this covers
- A sore gum flap over a partly erupted tooth
- The most common version. The gum over a tooth that is only halfway through gets inflamed, swollen and tender, and it is easily bitten by the tooth above.
- Pain that spreads along the jaw or into the ear
- Wisdom tooth pain refers freely. Ear ache and jaw ache on the same side with no ear infection is a familiar pattern.
- Difficulty opening the mouth
- A jaw that will only open a couple of finger widths alongside back-of-mouth pain is a sign the inflammation is into the muscle. That is an urgent call.
- Decay in the tooth in front
- A wisdom tooth pressed against its neighbour makes a spot that cannot be cleaned. The tooth that ends up in trouble is often not the wisdom tooth.
- Recurring episodes
- Three flare-ups in a year is a pattern rather than bad luck, and it is worth raising as a pattern rather than as one more sore week.
What happens, in order
- 01
Check whether you can open normally
Restricted opening, fever, or swelling under the jaw move this up the list considerably.
- 02
Warm salt water rinses
The standard comfort measure for an inflamed gum flap. In the mouth, not on the face.
- 03
Keep the area clean even though it hurts
Brushing gently at the back is uncomfortable and it is what stops a flare from getting worse. Avoiding it entirely is what feeds it.
- 04
Call and say which side and how long
Ring (765) 330-8726, mention any restriction in opening, and mention whether this has happened before.
Why the back of the mouth is different
A wisdom tooth that has only partly come through leaves a pocket of gum over part of the crown that nothing can properly clean. Food and bacteria get underneath, the gum inflames, the tooth above bites the swollen flap, and the swelling gets worse. It is a loop, and it explains why these episodes flare so quickly and settle so slowly.
The episode that settles on its own
Most flare-ups do calm down over several days. That is why a lot of people have had four of them and never mentioned it to a dentist. The problem is that each episode is happening at a spot that cannot be cleaned, and the damage accumulates quietly in the tooth in front, which is the one people actually mind losing.
What is decided at the exam
Whether a wisdom tooth is worth removing depends on its position, its angle, the state of the tooth in front and how often it flares. That is a radiograph and an examination, not a phone conversation and definitely not a website. Anybody telling you the answer before looking is selling something.
Worth knowing
Salt water goes in the mouth, cold goes on the face
Warm rinses inside, cold compress outside. The two get mixed up constantly.
Restricted opening is an urgent sign
It means the inflammation has reached muscle, and it needs seeing rather than waiting out.
A flare during exam week is not a coincidence you can fix by ignoring it
Run down, sleeping badly and eating at odd hours is the classic run-up. Ring early in the week, not on the Friday.
Wisdom tooth pain, asked and answered
Do all wisdom teeth need taking out?
No, and plenty stay put for life without trouble. Which category yours is in is decided by an examination and a film.
It settled down. Do I still need to call?
If it has settled more than once, yes. Repeat episodes at a spot that cannot be cleaned tend to end with the neighbouring tooth in trouble.
My jaw will only open a little way. Is that serious?
It is a sign the inflammation has spread into muscle, and it is one of the versions to ring about the same day.
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Nothing on this page can look at your tooth.
This is general information about wisdom tooth pain. Whether it is what you have, and whether it can be handled here, are both questions for the call.