Problem with numbing?!


Question:

Problem with numbing?

Every time I need to have a cavity filled, I need about 3 shots in my mouth. My gums, cheek and lips get numb but not my teeth and then I can still feel all the drilling in my teeth. It is incredibly painful, but I prefer to get cavities taken care of before my teeth need to be pulled out. My dentist says he only has two patients with this problem. One theory I have heard (not from my dentist) is that people who are resistant to the Novocaine have a history of using methamphetamines and so they have a tolerance. This is not the issue with me so I'm not sure what the problem is. I am hoping I never have to go through it again, but cavities happen. Any knowledge on this?

Additional Details

2 months ago
It' happened 3 times and each time was on my bottom row of teeth towards the back, but on each side of my mouth. Besides the 3 times, I've never had dental work done and I've never had a cavity on the top row of my teeth. Thanks for your response. It's very helpful.


Answers:

Sometimes your psyche takes over and you get so nervous that the receptors never get numb for some reason. Getting nitrous oxide to relax you so you are not thinking about getting numb/not getting numb sometimes is all you need. Next, when you have had problems getting numb has it been in different areas of your mouth or is it in the same area? Everyone is anatomically different, occasionally some peoples nerve layout is off just enough that getting them numb is very difficult. Usually when people say they have trouble getting numb it is w/ lower injections. This is why they often say my tongue got numb but my teeth didn't b/c the nerve to the tongue and nerve to the teeth are both numbed with lower injections. The tongue nerve is hit almost immediately when any anesthetic is let out, but the nerve to the teeth is a little harder to get to. If you get in to big of a hurry to get the injection over with you may miss it. Make sure you remain calm, open as wide as possible, and hold very still as injections are more comfortable if they are slow/take a little more time. However, after I had several teeth extracted for my braces I did not get numb very easily for almost 2 years. I don't know if having so much work done altered things or if having the teeth (permanent premolars) pulled messed with the nerve layout, but after a few years all the sudden I didn't have this problem anymore. However, all the patients I know with your problem get numb when put on nitrous oxide and using stronger/longer acting anesthetics.




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