Archives for July 2025

Crowns for TMJ Disorder?

Posted on July 30, 2025 by writeradmin.

I have been getting treatment for some TMJ Disorder. My dentist is a TMJ Specialist. We started with a nightguard, which has alleviated my symptoms. There are a few teeth in the back that are so ground down that she wants to place some crowns and onlays. She believes this will help even more with the TMJ. Is this a normal treatment or is she just trying to give additional treatment?

Avery

Dear Avery,

Yes, crowning teeth is an accepted treatment for TMJ Disorder. In fact, in some severe cases, a dentist may suggest a full-mouth reconstruction, which will mean placing a crown on every tooth. It sounds like you just have some back teeth ground down and the fact that your nightguard has been helping is a good sign that your dentist is on the right track.

TMJ Disorder is when the temporomandibular joint is not working properly. A poorly aligned bite is one of the causes of this. Crowning the teeth can help to align your bite when done properly.

One thing to be aware of. You said your dentist is a TMJ Specialist. I want to make sure you understand that TMJ does not have a recognized specialty. However, it does require some post-doctoral training in order to do it properly. When a dentist starts messing with your bite and they do not have specific TMJ training, then you can get into trouble.

Some of the best post-doctoral training centers in TMJ are:

The Pankey Institute
The Dawson Academy
Spear Education
The Las Vegas Institute for Advanced Dental Studies
Piper Education and Research Center

Ideally, you would be seeing a dentist who has completed coursework at one of these institutions rather than just taken a few classes. It sounds like your dentist knows what they are doing, but it never hurts to ask some questions.

This blog is brought to you by Kalamazoo Dentist Dr. Susan Dennis.

Dentist Can’t Figure Out Why My Tooth Hurts

Posted on July 16, 2025 by writeradmin.

I’ve had a horrible toothache for several days and was able to get an appointment with my dentist. I’d just had some radiographs done three months ago, so he used those. He told me he didn’t see any crack in the filling where I am having the pain. He did prescribe me some antibiotics and told me if the pain goes away that I do not have to worry about it. However, this has me very worried because everything I’ve read said that if a tooth is infected, antibiotics will only be a temporary solution until the meds are done. Maybe I’m wrong.

LeeAnn

Dear LeeAnn,

The very first thing I am going to say is that you need a new dentist. There is so much wrong with both his diagnostic skills as well as his treatment plan. Let’s start with the diagnostics. He went from a three month old radiograph. Three months old. You didn’t have a toothache three months ago, did you? If not, then those imagings are useless. Something has changed in the last three months.

Second, there are other tests to do in addition to the one he did. For instance: tapping the tooth to evaluate pain, hot/cold tests, even electrical tests to determine if the pulp is alive. He did none of these. He just looked at three month old imaging. That is insane.

Even worse, however, is his treatment plan.If your antibiotics do help, that is a sign of a tooth infection. As you indicated, antibiotics do not cure tooth infections. You have a better understanding of this than your dentist.

There are two ways to adequately treat a tooth infection. The first is with a root canal treatment. The second is by extracting the tooth. If the antibiotics do cause the pain to get better, then I want you to see a dentist, a different dentist, to get this tooth treated. If you don’t, you’ll end up with a dental emergency that can turn life threatening.

This blog is brought to you by Portage Dentist Dr. Susan Dennis.
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Serious Pain After Tooth Extraction

Posted on July 5, 2025 by writeradmin.

I had a tooth extraction on an upper molar three weeks ago. I thought the pain would be gone by now. The mornings start out okay, just a bit achy, but by the end of the day it is throbbing so much that I want to cry. There is also some pain in my lower jaw and part of my cheek will go a bit numb. Is this normal? Can I do anything to make it any easier?

Myka

Dear Myka,

I am sorry for what you’re feeling. Some of what is going on with your tooth extraction is normal; others ar not. The part that is normal is the throbbing getting worse as the day moves on. This is because of increased blood flow from activity. Referred pain is also quite common, so your bottom arch hurting could be from that. However, what isn’t normal is the length of time. Any pain like this should be gone within the first week.

I want you to contact your dentist. My guess is that you have a residual infection. You don’t want this to turn into a dental emergency. I think your dentist would give you an antibiotic like Clindamycin until the pain is gone for several days.

Once your tooth extraction is completely healed, you will need to replace the tooth that you had removed. The best tooth replacement is a dental implant. It will be the closest thing to having a healthy natural tooth in your mouth again.

As for the numbness you are feeling, that could be from a nerve getting touched in the process of the extraction. That will get better with time. It is important that you communicate with your dentist what is going on. If there is a residual infection as I suspect, it will only get worse.

This blog is brought to you by Portage, MI Dentist Dr. Susan Dennis.

Retainer After Invisalign Treatment

Posted on July 1, 2025 by writeradmin.

I finished my Invisalign treatment and am in the process of moving. I’m wearing the last pair of aligners now. Is there a procedure for this? Do I just be done with the aligners or do I need to find an Invisalign provider for some post-treatment?

Dani

Dear Dani,

Almost everyone needs to wear a retainer for a period of time after their orthodontic treatment. Otherwise, your teeth could shift out of position again. They need time to truly adjust to their correct position. You have a few options. First, you could find an Invisalign dentist who can help you with an Invisalign styled retainer. Another option is to see a regular dentist who can give you a basic retainer. They are simple and any dentist can do them. A third option is to use your final aligner as a retainer, but you’ll need to do it systematically.

First, wear the aligner all the time, as you’ve normally been for a month. Then, try wearing it every night for a couple of months. From there, try every other night. You’ll need to pay attention to whether your teeth are shifting about this point. You do that by noticing if they are a little more difficult to get back in. If that happens, then you need to go back to wearing them every night for a few weeks and then you can try again.

Once they’re stable at that time distance, you can try them again wearing them every few days at night, then eventually once a week. Take each step slowly making sure to check for shifting. Once you feel you’re done, you can stop wearing them, but keep them around to periodically check.

You can also use your final aligners as teeth whitening trays. Just ask your dentist to provide you with the gel and then wear it while you’re doing your retainer time until you have a teeth whitening level you are happy with.

This blog is brought to you by Kalamazoo Cosmetic Dentist Dr. Susan Dennis.