Sensitive Teeth? Causes, Symptoms, and Remedies

Dentinal Hypersensitivity is the unpleasant or painful sensation caused by cold and acidic stimuli, resulting from exposed dentine. Dentine is the porous portion of the tooth, rich in microscopic tubules containing nerve fibres, and is protected by the enamel. When enamel protection is lost, or the gums recede, the exposed dentine becomes sensitive, responding with a sharp pain to stimuli of various kinds: thermal, chemical, tactile, or osmotic. Furthermore, as dentine is less resistant than enamel, teeth become significantly more susceptible to cavities.

Dentinal Hypersensitivity is a form of “useful pain” — a symptom detector and early warning signal; at the first signs, it is essential to consult your dentist without delay. It is important to establish whether the cause of the sensitivity is attributable to enamel loss (through acid erosion or mechanical abrasion) or to a process of gum recession (periodontitis). Diagnosis is essential not only to determine the correct treatment, but above all to prevent more serious and irreversible conditions.

One of the primary treatments for eliminating Dentinal Hypersensitivity involves “sealing” — with specific products — those microscopic tubules that transmit stimuli to the nerve fibres. However, it is equally essential to control and contain oral acidity, avoiding acidic foods and beverages such as fruit juices, wine, coffee, and carbonated drinks, which are capable of lowering the pain threshold and making dental sensitivity more acute.

Clinical experience has demonstrated that Cariex® is capable of significantly reducing pain symptoms. Daily use is recommended — not only immediately after the consumption of food or beverages, but also throughout the day between meals and at night before bedtime. Cariex® is in fact capable of inhibiting the effects of external acidic stimuli; by maintaining oral pH at a neutral level, it prevents demineralisation of the exposed dentine, making the therapy prescribed by the dentist and/or dental hygienist considerably more effective and faster-acting.
 
Ask for Cariex® at your pharmacy!