The tooth reacts to cold and hot

If you have a sharp pain that occurs suddenly, and when the irritant ceases to act, it quickly passes, even without examination, based on complaints, hyperesthesia can be assumed – increased sensitivity of the teeth. But to get rid of these symptoms, you need to calculate the cause. And it is impossible to do this without examination and instrumental methods of examination.

Hyperesthesia is a symptom, a consequence of any pathological process in the oral cavity, when the sensitive areas of the tooth are exposed.

Enamel is the strongest tissue of the human body and is the first obstacle in the way of pathogenic bacteria. Another function of enamel is to protect the dentin and pulp of the teeth from aggressive factors, including temperature extremes. Below the enamel is dentin, which has a tubular structure. The liquid is concentrated here, which is a conductor, easily amenable to temperature changes and fluctuations. They also include branches of the nerve fibers of the pulp. When this liquid is heated, the nerves are irritated, which causes pain. This is the mechanism for the development of hyperesthesia. But what contributes to the decrease in the functions of enamel, why does it cease to protect the tooth from thermal irritants?

Why does the tooth react to cold and hot

There are many reasons for this phenomenon. But they do not always indicate pathological processes. Sometimes hyperesthesia is a completely expected reaction, for example, after a comprehensive oral hygiene procedure.

The accumulated tartar gradually pushes the level of the gums, but it reliably closes the place where the enamel passes into the root cementum, where the protection of the tooth is the thinnest anatomically. During the procedure, the stone is removed, and the area of ​​thin enamel remains exposed for some time: from several hours to a couple of days. After and provided that the level of the gums is restored, hyperesthesia disappears.

It is not uncommon for a tooth to react to cold and hot after a whitening procedure. Therefore, it should be carried out exclusively in the dentist’s office, where the doctor will prepare the oral cavity and take measures to prevent hyperesthesia – saturate the enamel with minerals, that is, strengthen it. Studies have shown that enamel remineralization after whitening is less effective compared to the preliminary one, that is, carried out before the procedure. But if there is a reaction, but no dental manipulations have been previously performed, then, most likely, hyperesthesia has pathological causes.

Non-carious lesions of the teeth. As a result of improper brushing of teeth, the use of hard brushes, aggressive pastes, a wedge-shaped defect is formed – a wedge-shaped cavity in the cervical region of the tooth. There is no enamel here, and the exposed dentin is defenseless in the face of aggressive environmental factors. There are other non-carious lesions: necrosis, erosion, and others, but are less common.

carious lesions. The reaction of the tooth is not hot, cold is a symptom of medium and deep caries, which struck the enamel, moved to the dentin and approaches the pulp of the tooth. The dentin-enamel junction is the first sensitive area of ​​the tooth. Especially quickly, such symptoms appear when a cavity is formed in the cervical region, where the enamel is anatomically thinner.

Gum disease. Recession, that is, gum prolapse, can occur for various reasons, for example, dystrophic processes in the bone, tissue, inflammatory periodontal diseases – a complex of tissues surrounding and holding the tooth in its place, improperly installed fillings, crowns and other prostheses, etc. Increased tooth sensitivity is one of the first symptoms of gum disease, along with bleeding.

What to do if the tooth reacts to cold and hot

The main goal of treatment is to eliminate the symptoms and the cause of such a reaction. This determines the tactics of treatment, for example, with a wedge-shaped defect or caries, filling is indispensable.

With gum recession, more complex treatment may be required, based on the reason for its prolapse – whether it be inflammatory diseases or chronic trauma, etc. In addition, a complex of remineralizing procedures is required.

In the dentist’s chair. Remineralization is the saturation of teeth with calcium, phosphorus and, of course, fluorine salts. Fluorine, as a strong reagent, forms strong bonds, makes enamel stronger and better resistant to aggressive environmental factors.

In the dentist’s chair, products with a high concentration of active substances are used, which are dangerous to use at home.

home procedures. After consultation, the dentist recommends toothpastes for sensitive teeth that saturate the enamel with minerals and strengthen its crystal lattice. Such pastes have low abrasiveness, but provide high-quality cleaning of the oral cavity.

In addition to pastes for sensitive teeth, it is imperative to use pastes containing fluorine, the content of which must be at least 1450 – 1650 ppm.

Only in difficult cases, surgical treatment may be required to close sensitive areas, restore gum level, etc.

Prevention of teeth at home

If the following rules are observed, it is possible with a high degree of probability to speak about the prevention of increased sensitivity of the teeth, whatever this reason may be.

Proper oral hygiene. Systematic brushing of teeth using basic and additional means and hygiene items: brushes, pastes, flosses, rinses, etc. Pastes should be with optimal abrasiveness – 75 – 85 RDA. You can always use pastes with more abrasiveness only a few times a week. When brushing your teeth, you need to follow all the rules: reciprocating movements are permissible only when cleaning the chewing surfaces of the teeth, the buccal ones must be cleaned with sweeping ones.

Professional oral hygiene. Not a single toothbrush and paste can provide 100% plaque removal, only professional techniques are capable of this, or rather, their combination. Depending on the rate of plaque formation, as well as a number of other factors, professional oral hygiene in the dentist’s office should be carried out 2-4 times a year.

Nutrition correction. Reduction in the diet of sweets, acidic foods. Attention should be paid to products containing calcium, phosphorus, magnesium and, of course, fluorine. In addition, it is necessary to pay attention to products that require careful chewing.

Regular preventive procedures. Regardless of complaints, you should visit the dentist at least twice a year. At these preventive procedures, the dentist will not only identify existing problems in a timely manner, prescribe treatment, but also carry out a number of preventive procedures. First of all, the remineralization of enamel is the saturation of it with minerals in order to strengthen it.

Popular questions and answers

When a tooth reacts to hot and cold, action must be taken. Hyperesthesia does not go away on its own, over time it only progresses and worsens. However, in some cases, even self-medication can be considered as no treatment. She answered the most important and exciting questions about the reaction of teeth to cold and hot doctor-dentist surgeon, implantologist, periodontologist Ekaterina Dronova.