If you have sensitive teeth, it's understandable if you're concerned that there's something wrong with the teeth that are painful. It might surprise you to discover that in many cases, it's not actually the fault of the teeth that you're in pain. If you have gum disease, it may instead be responsible for the sensitivity or discomfort that you're going through. If you're having this problem and know or suspect that you have gum disease, read on to discover how it could be putting you in pain.

What Happens in Gum Disease

Gum disease varies wildly depending on its stage and how much of your gum tissue it's affecting. However, in the later stages of gum disease, the issue is no longer limited to simple inflammation and irritation.

With more advanced forms of gum disease, infections can spread through the gum tissue to surrounding areas. This is how pain in the teeth from gum disease can start.

How It Affects Your Teeth

Your teeth aren't just simple bone. They have layers of different types of tissue inside of them, and are packed full of nerves to help send signals to your brain. This allows you to sense touch, heat, cold, and pain. However, if those nerves become damaged or inflamed, these signals can become erratic.

Gum disease can potentially harm the teeth, spreading the inflammation and infection from the gums into the deep pulp of the teeth. When this happens, it doesn't necessarily mean that you'll develop a cavity or lose the tooth. However, if the nerves are being irritated, you may experience chronic sensitivity or tooth pain. For some people, the tooth pain actually becomes an issue before they even realize that they have gum disease.

What To Do

If you think that your tooth pain is being caused by gum disease, you need to get help from a dentist. Severe gum disease can only be treated and reversed by a dentist, and getting help as soon as possible will mean the difference between saving a healthy tooth and having to have a sick tooth restored with a root canal.

Your dentist will examine your oral health and determine what to do from there. Generally, they'll start out with a thorough cleaning, which may advance into minor surgery if some of your gum tissue is too diseased to stay. Once the damaged tissue is removed, you'll be put on antibiotics to prevent further infection and to beat the existing infection. Your tooth should begin to feel relief very soon after the procedure and as the medication begins to do its job.

Gum disease can be devastating for your overall oral health, even going so far as to make your teeth hurt or to damage the internal pulp. Never let gum disease get advanced to the point where it can do this to your teeth. Make a plan to visit your dentist regularly to undergo routine dental services to get this condition taken care of before it can hurt you further.