Interactive symptom assessment
Walk through the same questions a dentist asks during an exam, cold and heat sensitivity, bite pain, swelling, what you can see in the mirror. We’ll suggest the most likely causes and how soon you should be seen.
Not a diagnosis. If you have facial swelling, fever, trouble breathing or swallowing, call (480) 530-3663 or seek emergency care now.
Reference
Most tooth pain follows one of the patterns below. The signature symptoms on the left are what your dentist looks for; the explanation and treatment are on the right. Only an in-person exam can confirm a diagnosis.
Signature symptoms
Inflammation in the nerve that can heal once the trigger is treated.
Treated with Dental filling →
Signature symptoms
Inflammation has progressed past the point where the nerve can heal on its own.
Treated with Root canal therapy →
Signature symptoms
The nerve has died and infection may have reached the bone around the root.
Treated with Dental abscess treatment →
Signature symptoms
A crack in the tooth that opens under chewing pressure. Often invisible on X-rays.
Treated with Cracked tooth care →
Signature symptoms
Tooth decay deep enough to cause symptoms. Caught early, this is a routine filling.
Treated with Dental filling →
Signature symptoms
Sensitivity from gum recession or worn enamel exposing the inner layer of the tooth.
Treated with Hygiene therapy and fluoride →
Signature symptoms
A pocket of infection in the gum next to the tooth, not inside the tooth itself.
Treated with Periodontal therapy and drainage →
Signature symptoms
A new restoration that contacts before your other teeth do.
Treated with Bite adjustment →
Signature symptoms
Pain from clenching, grinding, or jaw-joint dysfunction. Tooth-by-tooth tests are usually unremarkable.
Treated with TMJ therapy and night guard →
Signature symptoms
Inflammation of the gum flap over a partially erupted wisdom tooth.
Treated with Wisdom-tooth removal →
Signature symptoms
A sinus infection or pressure can mimic upper-back tooth pain. Worth ruling out alongside dental causes.
Pain that appears only with biting most often points to a cracked tooth, a high filling that contacts before your other teeth, or inflammation around the root tip. Sharp pain when releasing the bite is especially associated with cracked tooth syndrome.
Spontaneous throbbing tooth pain, especially with facial swelling, fever, or pain that wakes you from sleep, should be treated within 24 to 48 hours. It often indicates irreversible pulpitis or a developing abscess. If you have facial swelling, fever, or trouble swallowing, call us immediately or seek emergency care.
When hot causes severe pain and cold no longer hurts at all, the nerve inside the tooth is likely dying or has died. Trapped gases produced inside an inflamed or necrotic pulp expand with heat and contract with cold, which is why the pattern often reverses. This usually requires prompt root canal treatment or extraction.
Yes, the roots of upper back teeth sit very close to the maxillary sinus. A sinus infection or sustained sinus pressure can produce dull, multi-tooth pain that worsens when bending forward. If your symptoms include congestion or facial pressure and several upper teeth feel sore at once, a sinus cause is worth ruling out alongside dental causes.
Pain that lingers after cold or hot exposure, throbbing, swelling, or pain that disturbs sleep are signs the tooth needs attention within 24 to 48 hours. Brief sharp sensitivity that resolves quickly can usually wait for a routine appointment within a few weeks. Any facial swelling, fever, or difficulty swallowing or breathing requires immediate care.
A cavity is decay in the hard structure of the tooth and is usually painless or causes brief sensitivity to sweets and cold. An abscess is an infection at the tip of the tooth root or in the gum and typically produces severe, throbbing, or spontaneous pain along with swelling, a draining bump on the gum, or fever. Cavities are repaired with fillings; abscesses require root canal therapy, extraction, or periodontal treatment.
A useful at-home triage walks through cold and heat sensitivity, pain on biting (especially on releasing the bite), tap (percussion) sensitivity, gum tenderness, swelling, and what you can see in the mirror. The combination of those signals, not any single one, is what differentiates reversible problems (sensitivity, cavities) from urgent ones (irreversible pulpitis, abscess, cracked tooth). Our interactive Tooth Pain Assessment Tool above weighs all of those signals at once.
