Pain After a Filling

Pain, after you have had a filling done at the dentist, can be worrying and troublesome. The thought of having to go back is not particularly appetising but you don’t want the pain to carry on either. We shall discuss the causes and when you need to get further advice.

Pain after a filling whether it is a silver filling or a composite/white filling can be categorised as being severe, moderate or mild.

Severe Pain

Severe pain after a filling at the dentist can be defined as pain which requires painkillers to ease the pain but even then the pain may not completely go away. The normal painkillers that most patients reach out for first are paracetamols. Pain is severe if two paracetamol tablets are taken every four hours still does not completely take away the discomfort or indeed in very severe cases, it does not do anything whatsoever.

Severe pain is also when the pain is throbbing and continues even when you are lying down or at night time and because of this, you cannot sleep due to the pain. The pain may also radiate to other teeth and your jaw may be affected. The tooth will be extremely sensitive to hot, cold, sweet or even biting.

In all cases when the pain is severe, you should contact your dentist for an appointment immediately. For out of hours emergency such as a weekend, you can ring 111 or even your dentist as they may operate an emergency session for you.

Medium Levels of Pain

Medium levels of pain are defined as those when you require two paracetamol tablets taken every four hours and only then does the pain subside. It won’t keep you awake at night. The pain will be exacerbated by hot/cold and will want to linger on for more than a couple of minutes.

When the pain is a true medium level and if it does not settle down within a couple of days or show signs of getting any better, you should again contact your dentist

Mild Levels of Pain

A mild level of pain is quite normal after a dental filling. All dental treatment is a surgically invasive seizure so therefore it should not be surprising if there is some discomfort afterwards. The discomfort may be around the gum where the work was being carried out or even from where the injection was given. Also, it takes time to fully settle down after a filling. Even for mild pain that which does not require any analgesics, the slight discomfort should settle down after a couple of weeks but if it does not, you should to your dentist for further advice.