Tooth pain with Invisalign

I am on my fifth set of aligners with invisalign. I’m having pretty bad tooth pain. My dentist wondered if I could have a leaky filling. He wants to remove it and put in a temporary filling to see how it does. Do you think this is OK?

Brenda L.- Washington

Brenda,

There could be a few things going on. First, and a very probable one, is uncomfortableness from orthodontic work. Whenever you are moving your teeth, it doesn’t matter if you’re using Invisalign or traditional metal braces, your teeth can become painful because of sensitivity to pressure. Your teeth are shifting and then have to reform the bone over the tooth root.

A second possible reason for the pain in your tooth is what your dentist is suggesting. You could have a defective filling. It is not uncommon for amalgam (silver) fillings to begin to crack and leak.  He’ll put a temporary filling in and seal your teeth better. In a fair amount of time it will feel better, if that was the problem.

A third reason could be that your tooth is infected. You may want your dentist to do an x-ray to eliminate an infection.

This blog is brought to you by Lafayette Louisiana dentist Dr. Mike Malone.