The range of possible dental disorders are wide and some are more easily recognized than others. It can be a bit perplexing to consider you may have a dental disorder without realizing it. It’s actually more common than you might think. Some disorders have obvious symptoms that may have you running to our office. Others can be more subtle. Do you feel tired, easily irritable, or have difficulty focusing? Do you have facial soreness or pain? Surprisingly, these may be the result of a dental disorder. Our goal is to educate our patients on common and uncommon symptoms that may be a sign to visit our office and receive the required care to remedy these conditions.
A dental disorder is a disruption of your body’s natural process relating to your oral health. Despite its origins, it is important to understand symptoms may be experienced elsewhere in the body. For this reason, many suffer from ailments they don’t consider relevant to tell their dentist. However, as we are a medical provider we encourage you to share things that may not seem related – you never know! Here are a few to keep on the lookout, so you can better identify signs should something be amiss.
1) Redness and swelling of the gums may indicate the presence of gingivitis, early-stage gum disease or even later stage gum and bone disease. Left untreated, it can progress into full blown periodontitis that can threaten your smile, cause oral odors, and even cause tooth loss. Bleeding gums, tooth mobility, and soreness are all signs of periodontitis and must be checked.
2) Simple bad breath, or halitosis, is very common among adults and teens. While it usually isn’t cause for too much concern, we understand it can weigh on your self-esteem. We care about your health and happiness, and would love to work with you to address the root of the issue. Restoring healthy smiles is what we do; restoring confidence is a happy side effect.
3) Additionally, a dry mouth may not seem like a dire situation. However, if your mouth constantly feels dry it can lead to an increased risk of tooth decay. Saliva plays an important role in ridding your mouth of harmful bacteria. Saliva also aids in digestion meaning dry mouth can evolve into issues that transcend the health of your smile.
4) Sleep apnea is another condition that may seem unrelated to your dental health. Sleep Apnea can lead to excessive tiredness and other signs of exhaustion. Sleep Apnea threatens your overall health when you don’t receive adequate quality sleep over long periods of time. Your sleeping habits may not seem relevant to tell your dentist, but there is a lot we can do to completely resolve the situation!
5) While scary to confront, oral growths are a condition that can emerge as a serious condition. It is possible for oral growths to be completely benign and harmless, but in other cases they can be the beginning stages of cancer. For this reason it’s important a medical professional diagnose and treat the growths accordingly. Even if you are certain it’s harmless (for example, perhaps you suffered trauma to the face that injured your mouth), it’s still worth an appointment to ensure you’re not at an increased risk for infection or other potential issues.
6) TMD (Temporomandibular Disorder) is a dysfunction of the TMJ – two joints located at the end of your lower jaw bone (the area near your ears you can feel move.) TMD is sometimes known as “imposter syndrome” because it can mimic so many conditions, and it can be difficult to relate it back to a dental disorder. It can lead to pain in the jaws, clicking or popping sounds, migraines, numbness in the fingers and toes, lock jaw, or many other related issues. A common problem with TMD is that, in the event your symptoms include non-dental related pain such as migraines or numb extremities, patients may not tell their dentist (without realizing how closely related it may be) and find themselves unable to diagnose the problem and suffer with the consequences long-term.
We understand some conditions may seem complex. Rest assured we are here to work with you to find a solution to your unique needs. If you feel one or more of these conditions may apply to you or a family member, call our office to begin seeking relief today.
Coastal Connecticut Dentistry
112 Cross Road
Waterford, CT 06385
Phone: 860-447-1787
