the space in between teeth feel sensitive

To prevent the notches from getting worse, avoid using abrasive toothpaste and hard toothbrushes, keep the gumline areas clean, and wear a nightguard to ease clenching and grinding pressure. Rossen will recommend to you that it be filled with a tooth-colored material for strength as well as for a better cosmetic appearance. If you grind your teeth, ask your dentist about a mouth guard. Use gentle strokes, rather than vigorous or harsh scrubbing, and avoid using an abrasive toothpaste. If a notch is so deep that there is a concern for tooth breakage or a cavity, Dr. To prevent sensitive teeth from recurring, brush your teeth twice a day with a soft-bristled toothbrush and fluoride toothpaste and floss daily. Teeth that have notches at the gumline can be painful to cold, sweets, and even fingernails(!), so a sensitive formula toothpaste is often recommended because it has smaller silica grit particles as well as a medicine designed to settle the nerves down. Because roots are seven times softer than enamel, an “undercut” can form. The most common cause of gum recession and notching is tooth stress that may be caused by a poor bite, clenching, or grinding.Įxcessive toothbrushing, acid erosion, and even tooth decay can also make the notches more prominent. Gappy teeth are quite common, but sometimes. Over time, though, many factors can cause gums to recede and expose the root. When you have extra space between two or more of your teeth, your doctor calls this spacing issues or gap teeth. If a tooth has not had any damage, it is rare to be able to feel this line that is present all the way around the tooth because it is designed to be just under the surface of the gumline. That’s where the crown of the tooth ends and the root begins. At this thin edge is a line called the cementoenamel junction. This enamel forms a shell that protects the inner layers of the teeth from damage, but it thins out at it reaches the gumline. We all have a thick layer of natural ceramic-like coating on our teeth called enamel. Notches at the gumline generally occur on the outside (facial) surfaces of teeth. This week’s question comes from Lynette, who showed us how she was able to “catch” her fingernail on the side of a tooth in a groove that had been present for several years.

The space in between teeth feel sensitive