How does that work then. Bottom back but one tooth feels hollow, has done since it was filled a couple of years ago, dentist says it's fine, however, every now and then, especially after lying down, I get a dull ache in the tooth that spreads round to my front teeth, then really hurts in my shoulder and arm, how does that work?

Heart attack?

How often do you get this?

aids.

What Paul4stones said – that was my immediate reaction.

on the rare occasion I get indigestion, I get tooth ache in a tooth that's been crowned. It's just cos we're special 😉

Actually tooth abscesses can be a little more serious than many people imagine – thankfully however, due to modern dentistry, this is rarely the case now. But a long-term tooth abscess can I believe, cause heart damage. No idea if this is the case in this in instance – probably not I should imagine, but I wouldn't be too dismissive of pain in the left arm region.

http://www.medhelp.org/posts/Heart-Disease/Re-Tooth-abscess-and-heart-valve-damage/show/871667

Radiated pain.

The nerves cross over very close and the chemical to transmit pain confuses the nerves.

I'm still alive

phew! I went out with a girl who's dad was an emergency dentist, he used to sit in the pub all day. and tell people to drink whisky if they had pain!!

Phil Ramshaw by any chance? By the way, Phil is an ace name for a dentist

no, was a pisspot from morpeth I know who you meean tho! Phil McCavity now thats a dentists name

I get that too, but sometimes coupled with a feeling that i have wind trapped in my throat/stomach.

Starts in a tooth, then the jaw, then down the neck and around the shoulder

Wonder if it is heart related.

I 100% guarantee that if you went into A+E with that story, they'd keep you overnight for the 'heart attack' bloodtest 12hrs later (not that it sounds like a heart attack!).
Doctors lose sight of the actual story they are being told, and focus on the individual 'facts', not the whole item!

Drac probably has it – referred pain from the jaw can go anywhere.

Heart pains CAN spread up into the jaw (the strongest discriminating factor for cardiac pain you know!), but usually starts in the chest, then moves up into neck/jaw/arm, not the other way round. plus if you already have a dental problem, that seems most likely…..

DrP

DrP, I too can confirm this, from personal experience. They won't let you go home either when you feel well.

I had the full ECG, Traponine (sp?) test done, 3 days in hospital etc – turns out it was just muscular-skeletal pains.

Ignoring the libellous accusations against local dentists I'm glad you're still alive.

As it's a bank holiday lets try some DIY home diagnosis. First tap your teeth with something blunt like a spoon handle. Tap gently on the biting surface – do the all feel the same in that area or does one feel different?

Next gets tricky. If you can find a sliver of ice or a small ice cube try and hold it on an individual tooth and see what response you get. A normal healhy tooth will feel sudden sharp pain (contrary to what the adverts would have you believe). A tooth where the nerve has died or where it is already root filled (nerve removed) will feel nothing.

If the pain only comes when lying down then it could be a bit of heartburn type pain which can mimic coronary pain, hence the name.

I wouldn't pay much attention to ernie's link above – the reply seemed to be touting for business rather than attempting to provide an evidence based reply. There is some evidence for long term chronic inflammatory disease (like untreated tooth abscess or gum disease) being linked with heart disease and stroke (some of the folks i Newcastle did this) but as far as I know it's not a cause and effect relationship, maybe more just if you get one of these you're likely to get the other.

Hope that helps.

Cheers Paul. I suffer with sinus problems, however I believe, possibly incorrectly that the movement of snot and the related pain doesn't manifest itself in pain in the lower teeth? It does hurt when tapped, need to find some ice.

Re the dentist above, he was actually my dentist for quite a while, and a bloody good one at that, the Tongue in cheek remark was in reference to how cool & laid back he can seem, although I can see how it could be read wrongly

I think I taught him 😉

Sinus pain wouldn't normally be felt in the lower jaw but anything's possible!

However, I do believe all dentists are unhinged in some kind of way, is it fun to make grown men panic? 🙂

This thread is quite interesting.
Last year I had what I'd say is the worst dental pain I've ever experienced, worse on the agony scale than any broken bones/ dislocations/ stabbings etc.
It started out as a numb hollow pain in both upper and lower jaw and increased massively until it was producing spasms affecting the back of my head, down to my neck, with the lower teeth being worst.
I didnt get a minutes sleep in about 2 weeks.
My excellent (NHS) dentist was initially stumped as she couldn't find anything wrong with my teeth at all but decided to give me an antibiotic to treat sinusitus- It cleared it up in about 3 days.

Doctors lose sight of the actual story they are being told, and focus on the individual 'facts', not the whole item!

Even more so if they work for NHS Direct affectionately known as Ambulance Indirect.

^^ I'm sure!

From what I hear from you guys (and patients for that matter) it just seems to be a longer way of eventually dialling 999!

DrP

I know this sounds odd and won't help the OP at all (with the pain), but when J had his arm amputated and was starting to suffer with phantom pain his OT told him he could massage/tap a particular part of his face, near his jaw/cheek, and it can ease pain in the arm that is not there. It's something to do with where the 'sensation' nerves for the arm and face are located in the brain, they are apparently right next to one another. As it happens it didn't help the pain but he said he could definitely feel a sensation in the arm that wasn't there when he did it.
I think what I am saying is, it doesn't surprise me that dental pain can manifest in the arm too.

And I hope the pain eases for you soon. Tooth pain is horrible.

paulosoxo:
Have recently discovered teeth are peculiar and very contrary things!
Bit on something in my sarnie about 18months ago, big crunching sound, all ok….or so I thought. Things got a bit sensitive going exponential in a few days. Dentist said I'd cracked a molar. He discovered this when tapping other teeth – no reaction, tapped cracked one – I actually left the reclining chair!
I lacked conviction. The horizontal crack is apparently unusual and difficult, a cap might not work. I should have had it out…. but wimped out and had it capped. Expensive. It was never quite right, but at the end of october, following a slight crack as i ate something, it started to hurt a bit, a bit more, then it would go. Then it came back, pain on and off for a few weeks. I got it checked out and decided to leave it to see….there was slight infection which might have been there from the start. It might flare up if I was low. Hmmmm.
About a week later I had bad toothache. Never had it before. Between 6pm and the following 11am, I took more Neurofen than I've taken during the rest of my life! The positive thing about real bad toothache is that it conclusive. You have to have it taken out for your sanity!!!
My new dentist was incredible. Took it out, really did not feel a thing. It's out. i have a gap in my upper molars but I'm really happy. I sort of new all along it wasn't right…..
You might just find that later on it really tells you what to do!!!!
Sorry to be a harbinger of doom, but that was my recent experience, and now wish I'dtaken the decision much earlier.
best of luck.
Q

Basically, if it's cracked to the point of affecting the nerve in the middle it's usually a bucket job.

When I can't sleep I try and think of a mechanical/biological solution to this problem!

paul4stones: Yes, I think I was told that, but I was given an option – and took the wrong one!!!!
Duhhh…..
But the standard of dentistry now is quite stunning. My previous dentist removed a wisdom tooth and I didn't feel a thing.
He did say just before actually taking it out " You might not think it's numb enough, but it is…."
Wahhh!!!! But he was right.
My new one I've only seen a couple of times for checkups, so haven't any relationship yet, so was slightly apprehensive. She was brilliant! Didn't feel a thing.
As a total card carrying coward, I'm impressed.
cheers
Q