Can pressure while snorkeling cause tooth pain from an air pocket in a filling?

[Brian LB]

When I dive below 10 – 15ft while snorkeling one tooth begins hurting with an intense pain. My dentist says it is an air pocket within the filling of that tooth that is expanding and applying pressure to the nerve. I question whether an air pocket can expand in these conditions as he says it can.

How can pressure upon the body/tooth cause a filling with a possible air pocket to hurt like this?

 

[JaredJames]

I don't know the subject myself, but a quick Google turned up some results.

Here are a few resources for you:

http://scuba-doc.com/dendiv.htm

http://www.utahdiving.com/medicine.htm

At higher pressures, the air should compress not expand. As per one link above, the tooth is at danger of imploding.

 

[sophiecentaur]

When I dive below 10 – 15ft while snorkeling one tooth begins hurting with an intense pain. My dentist says it is an air pocket within the filling of that tooth that is expanding and applying pressure to the nerve. I question whether an air pocket can expand in these conditions as he says it can.

How can pressure upon the body/tooth cause a filling with a possible air pocket to hurt like this?

What do dentists know? He meant Compressed. If the pocket of air is compressed it will mean that the liquid bits can move and cause pain. If the air were not there then there would be no movement (the fluid wouldn't be compressible) and no pain. Most of our body is liquid and there is little problem with minor pressure changes but out inner ear has an air space which is not vented very well and can cause pain when diving or flying. You need to 'pop your ears' or chew sweets to let air in or out of your Eustacian Tubes and equalise the volume of air in the ear voids.

If you spend a lot of time at depth, you would probably find the pain went away, only to return when you come up again when there would be more movement.

 

[Brian LB]

What do dentists know? He meant Compressed. If the pocket of air is compressed it will mean that the liquid bits can move and cause pain. If the air were not there then there would be no movement (the fluid wouldn't be compressible) and no pain. Most of our body is liquid and there is little problem with minor pressure changes but out inner ear has an air space which is not vented very well and can cause pain when diving or flying. You need to 'pop your ears' or chew sweets to let air in or out of your Eustachian Tubes and equalize the volume of air in the ear voids.

If you spend a lot of time at depth, you would probably find the pain went away, only to return when you come up again when there would be more movement.

If I understand correctly you are saying the pain is caused by an actual compression or movement of the tooth?

In the above reference website it states a well sealed air pocket within a tooth will become a “relative vacuum” at depths. If so, that would cause pain in itself aside from “tooth movement”.

 

[sophiecentaur]

I would say that it is more likely that the soft bits are more likely to move. Even the nerve itself or the gunge (a technical, medical term) around it. Nerves are v touchy devils, don'tchaknow.

 

[Drakkith]

If I understand correctly you are saying the pain is caused by an actual compression or movement of the tooth?

In the above reference website it states a well sealed air pocket within a tooth will become a “relative vacuum” at depths. If so, that would cause pain in itself aside from “tooth movement”.

Yes, the pressure difference between the air pocket in your filling and the surrounding environment is probably causing the pain. I'm guessing your whole tooth is distorting slightly. I could see this putting pressure on the nerve.

 

[sophiecentaur]

The "whole tooth" is a rigid structure. It is more likely to be the surrounding liquid in the gum that is squeezed into the bottom of the tooth - or even blood through the capillary. The nerve, if I remember right, enters through a small hole in the root so any liquid going in and out would be flowing right next to it. The volume of the air bubble would be around 70% of the original at that depth.

 

[Drakkith]

The "whole tooth" is a rigid structure. It is more likely to be the surrounding liquid in the gum that is squeezed into the bottom of the tooth - or even blood through the capillary. The nerve, if I remember right, enters through a small hole in the root so any liquid going in and out would be flowing right next to it. The volume of the air bubble would be around 70% of the original at that depth.

I can see that. But how does a filling with air in it effect the root and nerve if its just in the enamel?

 

[sophiecentaur]

The nerve isn't in the enamel. It's in the softer dentine (google an image of a tooth). From what your dentist has said, it seems that there is a bubble under the filling (hence, under the enamel layer and inside the rigid shell of the tooth). The bubble will not be 'vented' to the mouth. If it were, it would just compress, along with the rest of you and there would be no movement of liquid and no pain. What I'm suggesting is that the bubble is compressing due to liquid / soft tissue flowing into the tooth from the bottom as pressure increases. This constitutes an actual distortion and the movement could be what is upsetting the nerve. When the tooth is full of liquid / tissue there is no air inside it so there is no flow of liquid as the pressure changes because there is no change in volume.
I can't think of any other way of describing what I mean.

 

[Drakkith]

Oh, ok sophie. I understand you now. I didn't realize a filling went through the enamel and into the softer parts underneath.

 

[sophiecentaur]

Yes. They 'undercut' the enamel to give the filling a key and to stop it falling out. The enamel is very thin, btw.
The bad news is that, every time a filling is put in, they cut away more enamel than necessary (a bigger hole) and the join between enamel and filling constitutes a gap in the defence. There used to be a fashion for filling as soon as a blemish appeared (because they were paid per filling, I guess!) but many of these blemishes will heal naturally. I have four kids and they only have about three fillings between them. My mouth is chock full of them and the dentists are driving around in Mercedes because of my fillings!

 

[Drakkith]

Hrmm...i have several fillings myself. I've never heard of these blemishes before...I'll have to look it up.

 

[sophiecentaur]

When I was a little lad (Victorian time) the dentist would go round with a pointed tool and push quite hard into all the nooks and crannies. This was a bit like the MOT test screwdriver in the chassis of an old car. However, the difference was that rust doesn't heal itself but a live tooth does. If he wanted to, he could always find a bit of work to do. Also like the MOT inspection.

 

[Drakkith]

How does enamel heal itself? Other than with fluoride from toothpaste and such.

 

[sophiecentaur]

A tooth is not 'dead'. There is a small blood supply and a nerve. The blood brings in materials for a very slow, constant, repair process. Rodents' teeth are continually laying down enamel on the chisel-like cutting edges of their incisors which are designed to be worn down by the action of upper teeth against lower teeth.

 

[Drakkith]

Sure, I know about a rodents teeth. But I've never heard of our teeth repairing themselves. I'd love some more info on this. =)

 

[sophiecentaur]

Sure, I know about a rodents teeth. But I've never heard of our teeth repairing themselves. I'd love some more info on this. =)

Biology schoolbook when I was a lad. Try Google with Open Root + Teeth? Or dental health fora?