Dr. Steven Kacel is a cosmetic dentistry specialist serving the North Shore, Illinois, area. A member of the American Dental Association, the Academy of General Dentistry, and American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry, among other organizations, he was won numerous awards from the Academy of General Dentistry. In this article, he tells us how a sinus infection could lead to a toothache.
Many people don’t realize it, but the sinuses and your teeth are very connected. The connection between the two is that the roots in the upper back teeth are actually in the sinuses. So if your sinus membranes are infected, they can irritate the nerves that are in the middle of your teeth.
Irritated nerves can definitely lead to the feeling of an achy toothache, which is one reason that a lot of people tend to feel like their teeth hurt around the same time as they get a bad cold.
Sometimes you don’t even need to have a sinus infection specifically to get that toothache feeling. But if there is fluid, and there are changes in pressure within the sinus, then that can definitely affect the nerves in the teeth.
The nerves that are affected by this are the same ones that detect changes like hot and cold. So a sinus infection could detonate those nerves, and cause you to feel a sharp pain even if nothing is wrong with your teeth, per se.
This same interconnectedness is also the reason why it can be difficult as a dentist to remove some teeth people have. When you remove some of these teeth, you have to make sure you don’t remove the lining of the sinus at the same time.
As a patient, it can be tough to tell whether the pain you are feeling is being caused by a sinus infection, a cold, or an actual tooth problem that needs to be checked out. However, if I got a toothache that came on at a similar time as a cold or a sinus infection — plus or minus a few days — then I personally would focus on doing something to deal with the cold or sinus infection, rather than starting with my dentist. If the aching tooth lingers once the sinus infection is long gone, though, then it is probably worth contacting your dentist to make sure something else isn’t going on and causing your pain.
The information in the article is not intended to substitute for the medical expertise and advice of your healthcare provider. We encourage you to discuss any decisions about treatment or care with an appropriate healthcare provider.
