I.Dup. Posted August 6, 2012 Share Posted August 6, 2012 My teeth are strong and I have never had a cavity but I have a flap of my gums that covers my back bottom wisdom tooth (still have not taken my wisdom teeth out). It bothers me off and on. I started using a new toothbrush that has one of those scrubbers that is meant to help scrub your back teeth and it irritated that flap of gums and now it is killing me. It has gotten increasingly worse over the past 2 days, now I cannot open my mouth or chew without major pain. Pressing around back there it is not my tooth that hurts, just the flap of gum and the area around it feels very irritated. I will not have dental coverage for another month or two and hate to pay hundreds of dollars to go in and get this looked at. What can they really do that won't be a major procedure like taking my wisdom teeth out? I mean obviously I don't want to pay thousands to get my wisdom teeth out when we will have coverage in another month or so. But man, this hurts. Is there anything else I can do? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Munchkins_mama Posted August 6, 2012 Share Posted August 6, 2012 Do you have a natural store close by? If you can get some pure Clove essential oil and apply it it will help with the pain. It is a 'hot' oil so it will feel like it's burning at first but then it will numb the area and help with healing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Night Elf Posted August 6, 2012 Share Posted August 6, 2012 If it's only irritated because of the new toothbrush, how about using something like oragel to numb it while it heals? Obviously stop using that new toothbrush. I have no idea how they would handle just a flap. They'll probably want to remove the wisdom teeth but not everyone chooses to do so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Impish Posted August 6, 2012 Share Posted August 6, 2012 Sounds like you may have a dental infection. I'd go to the Dr and get abx. If it's abcessed, or heading that way, waiting can lead to serious health issues. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted August 6, 2012 Share Posted August 6, 2012 Gargle with warm salt water. It might not totally solve the problem but it should help to bring down some of the inflammation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A.Balaban Posted August 6, 2012 Share Posted August 6, 2012 I have a flap too, and my wisdom teeth are not out either. It bothers me off and on. I try to be mindful of what I eat / how I chew to keep food out of there. I am seeing a dentist in a couple weeks and just hoping it "stays quiet" until then. I hope other posters have some good advice for you. :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slipper Posted August 6, 2012 Share Posted August 6, 2012 Are you an established patient with a dentist already? If so, go see him and explain that you won't have dental insurance for another two months. I have known dentists who have prescribed antibiotics and one course of pain meds to get a patient through until they have insurance. If you don't, I would still make the appointment and at least get antibiotics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I.Dup. Posted August 6, 2012 Author Share Posted August 6, 2012 Sounds like you may have a dental infection. I'd go to the Dr and get abx. If it's abcessed, or heading that way, waiting can lead to serious health issues. This is what I'm worried about. :/ I'm about to make an appointment just to have that wisdom tooth taken out because I'm sick of dealing with this off and on and it HURTS now. That may be affecting my judgment. Even if we have to pay the $800 to get the tooth taken out (I just called and asked) would that be stupid if we could just wait another month or 2? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Impish Posted August 6, 2012 Share Posted August 6, 2012 Most dentists prefer to take care of an infection before doing anything else. So, it's very likely that you could get the probable infection taken care of, then go back when you have ins and get the situation taken care of once and for all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laundrycrisis Posted August 6, 2012 Share Posted August 6, 2012 When I have gum infection issues, I rinse the area with diluted hydrogen peroxide. Just a small amount of warm tap water with a splash of peroxide in it, and sometimes a little salt stirred in. I had my wisdom teeth removed for this issue, and it reduced the frequency of infections and irritation, but it still comes back sometimes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susan C. Posted August 6, 2012 Share Posted August 6, 2012 This is what I'm worried about. :/ I'm about to make an appointment just to have that wisdom tooth taken out because I'm sick of dealing with this off and on and it HURTS now. That may be affecting my judgment. Even if we have to pay the $800 to get the tooth taken out (I just called and asked) would that be stupid if we could just wait another month or 2? Our dental insurance only covers half of what you are dealing with..... so $400 extra to get rid of pain and keep it from getting worse.... "priceless." Put it on your visa, pay it off in six months and move on with your life. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted August 6, 2012 Share Posted August 6, 2012 When I have gum infection issues, I rinse the area with diluted hydrogen peroxide. Just a small amount of warm tap water with a splash of peroxide in it, and sometimes a little salt stirred in. I had my wisdom teeth removed for this issue, and it reduced the frequency of infections and irritation, but it still comes back sometimes. I forgot about hydrogen peroxide. This is very good advice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I.Dup. Posted August 6, 2012 Author Share Posted August 6, 2012 I will do the hydrogen peroxide. It turns out we CAN sign up for the dental insurance now, so yay! I hope they'll cover some of it. It IS a good idea to get this tooth taken out though, right? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
InterestingCase Posted August 6, 2012 Share Posted August 6, 2012 An infection on your lower gum is more dangerous than the upper. When one of my lower wisdom teeth was coming in, it had trouble breaking through the gumline. The upper wisdom tooth had already come in and was cutting into the lower gum constantly, causing an infection. When I went to the dentist, he was very clear about the fact that I had let it go too far (I could not open my mouth without severe pain). He had to pull the upper (perfectly healthy) wisdom tooth to stop the constant irritation and avoid future serious infection. He also put me on antibiotics. I do not remember the particulars (I was eighteen, so it was a long time ago), but do get it checked out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laundrycrisis Posted August 6, 2012 Share Posted August 6, 2012 Another option until you can get dental coverage may be to have a medical doctor get you started on antibiotics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justLisa Posted August 6, 2012 Share Posted August 6, 2012 Most dentists prefer to take care of an infection before doing anything else. So, it's very likely that you could get the probable infection taken care of, then go back when you have ins and get the situation taken care of once and for all. This is what I had to do. I put off a root canal, which resulted from an old filling going bad. I had a round of abx and then the work done. It only took a day of abx for the gums to start feeling better. And if you have a dentist you see regularly, they can give you an rx mouth wash. For now lots of salt water swishing Tooth pain sucks :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiramisu Posted August 6, 2012 Share Posted August 6, 2012 I used to get this frequently and thankfully grew out of it without having to get a wisdom tooth removed. I haven't had a problem now in about 20 years, but I remember it well. :( I did at times get infections that required antibiotics. I also had a tooth on top filed just slightly so it wouldn't stab into the flap and make it worse when it acted up. The thing that really helped was that the dentist gave me a syringe type of device without a needle but with a very fine point. After eating I used it to rinse under the flap of gum. The reason why this is happening is that food is getting trapped in there, so you have to take care to rinse anything out. Be especially careful of popcorn. You may want to see what's available at a pharmacy to get back there and flush it out. If you can do that, you may get quick relief. If you don't, something might really be lodged in a tight spot and you'll need attention. Don't wait too long-- the pain can be agonizing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laundrycrisis Posted August 6, 2012 Share Posted August 6, 2012 The thing that really helped was that the dentist gave me a syringe type of device without a needle but with a very fine point. After eating I used it to rinse under the flap of gum. The reason why this is happening is that food is getting trapped in there, so you have to take care to rinse anything out. Be especially careful of popcorn. You may want to see what's available at a pharmacy to get back there and flush it out. If you can do that, you may get quick relief. If you don't, something might really be lodged in a tight spot and you'll need attention. Don't wait too long-- the pain can be agonizing. I have a syringe with a very fine curved tip, just for this. I also bought a portable waterpik. Honestly the waterpik is sometimes too rough. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I.Dup. Posted August 6, 2012 Author Share Posted August 6, 2012 OK, thank you all. I have a consultation scheduled with an oral surgeon for tomorrow at 3:15. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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