Toothache

[newbiee]

Can one buy oil of cloves or a gel to rub in the gums to allieviate toothache please?  Is something available from the chemist?

My husband had got a toothache come out of nowhere and he's in a lot of pain.  He has a pre-existing dental check up appointment in a week or so, so we need something to tide him over until then.

Thanks

[Clair]

In the short ter, he could try keeping a clove (clou de girofle) in his mouth near the tooth.

You should eb able to get some huile essentielle de girofle, but you need a fairly switched-on para-pharmacie which has a aromathérapie section or a health/bio shop...

Good luck [:)]

[Nickel]

If as you say, you have a dentist then you should phone him/her up and ask if you could be seen as an emergency - they always keep time for such occurences - no point in being in a lot of pain for a "week or so "

[Chancer]

Possibly the check up is in England?

My Dentist here cannot understand the British obsession with check-ups and refuses to book them , "if you have a problem come and see me" he says.

[vervialle]

when my husband has toothache he puts a paracetamol actually on the toothe and lets it disolve  into it and it does work.

[Frogslegs]

[quote user="Nickel"]If as you say, you have a dentist then you should phone him/her up and ask if you could be seen as an emergency - they always keep time for such occurences - no point in being in a lot of pain for a "week or so "[/quote]

You think so???  I have lived here for 7 years near Chef Boutonne...first time problem with an abcess...had to wait a week....second time, same problem had to wait 10 days! Asked to see another dentist in the same practise but was declined. First time they did not even bother to give me a prescription for the pain. Had to resort to painkillers and whisky......which still did not mask the pain.

[Nickel]

[quote user="J.R."]

Possibly the check up is in England?

[/quote]

Good point - I hadn't thought of that!!

However, if in France, I would still suggest trying to see your dentist even if others have not managed to see theirs, it doesn't mean that you wont be seen - especially if you attend the surgery in person.

[suein56]

[quote user="Nickel"]If as you say, you have a dentist then you should phone him/her up and ask if you could be seen as an emergency - they always keep time for such occurences - no point in being in a lot of pain for a "week or so "[/quote]

Absolutely agree with this view. When my OH developed toothache just before Xmas we called into the surgery to ask about making an emergency appointment and were told to wait as the Dentist would see my OH asap. He only waited about 10 mins until he was treated.

Frogslegs: in your situation I would change my Dentist, yours sounds brutally uncaring.

Sue

[Russethouse]

Where ever the dentist you have an appointment with is - you need one now. Find a dentist and tell them it is an emergency, pain like this comes from an abscess, abscesses cause swelling and it can be very serious.

For this evening-  I'm told Calvados held over the tooth eases the pain.........

 

[TWINKLE]

Now I know that this isn't for everyone - but this morning my trainer was telling me about how she used to cope with pain when a wisdom tooth was coming through.  Every hour or so she would do a handstand against her living room wall for 1 minute!  She said that it worked a treat. 

There's nothing worst than toothache - apart from child birth and man flu' but I once tried pouring a tiny capful of 'eau de vie' on a throbbing tooth and that helped until I got a dentist appointment.  I was so drunk though that I forgot to go[:D]

Only joking - hope you get it sorted soon!

 

[opas]

Definatly time to look for another dentist when you cannot get treated when in pain. Another option when you KNOW you have an abcess is to go to the doctor and get an atibiotic from them........I have done that with one of my girls and made an appointment with the dentist too.

[Oldie]

You should be able to get some NUROFENTABS from your pharmacy. These are soft tablets which contain 200mg of IBUPROFENE. The tablets are NOT swallowed but allowed to dissolve on the tooth (or gum)  They are specially formulated for DOULEURS DENTAIRES.

[Pixie Toadstool]

Hi Newbie,

My husband had the same problem when he broke a tooth in September and the nerve became exposed. 

I made some essence of cloves by putting several in some brandy and heating them up in the microwave.  The resulting essence was then applied to his tooth on some cotton wool, which he held there from time to time.  It was absolutely  marvellous and completely got rid of the pain (he also took ibuprofen tablets as back up).  We had to wait a day and a half to see the dentist who took out the root all for 50 euros (compare that to UK prices!!).

Pix

[newbiee]

Thanks for all of the replies folks.  What a helpful lot you are!

Yes, the check up is in the UK next week.  He particularly wants to see his dentist of many years standing as the offending tooth is next to the back two which were removed a couple of years ago.  He had a problem with this same tooth a while back (he jarred it on a walnut shell which had not been removed from a restaurant meal). 

As he is barely 40 his dentist was very keen that he didn't loose this tooth too... in fact if it didn't settle down she felt he needed root canal work to avoid an extraction [+o(]   Happily it did settle down on that occassion.

So, as it's the same tooth and as there is a bit of history there, he wants to see his own dentist.... especially as our French isn't great .... this isn't the time to have a language barrier or miscommunication.

But we will keep a careful eye on it in case it is an absses .... I had one a couple of years ago ... it was a pain only my enemies should know!!  [:P]

I gave him a large glass of my best brandy last night and expected him to swirl it around his mouth and tooth .... bamm!  down in one!  He also had cloves in his mouth.  He's really not one to complain about pain and I really feel for him..... he's even off his cups of tea !

[newbiee]

Yikes ... it's getting worse and we fear an abcess.

Can anybody recommend an English or English-speaking dentist near Limoges, Bellac, Oradour sur Glane ... that sort of area.... but if further that's fine.

[Pixie Toadstool]

Hi Newbiee - just putting cloves and brandy in your mouth at the same time WILL NOT have the same effect as heating the two together first because the hot alcohol actually extracts the essence of cloves into the alcohol and this is why it will work.  It will also work better if the resultant essence is applied whilst still warm as from a pharmacological point of view warm liquids are absorbed into the body quicker than cold - so try this process - I promise it will help him a lot.  My husband was amazed at how quickly it calmed the agony he was in - worked in about 5 minutes from applying it - a hell of a lot quicker than any painkillers I know of!

Pix

[newbiee]

Yes I did this this morning after reading your tip. Thanks.

It's not working any more though  [:(]

[Russethouse]

If you cannot find a dentist today then I would try the pharmacist and hope he will give you some antibiotics.

A dentist can see all they need to know from an xray usually, so as long as someone can tell you the term for 'I would like to keep this tooth' I think you should be OK.

Please don't delay, absesses cause swellings, swellings in the mouth should be attended to asap.

[gillian]

I too have toothache and will try the cloves and brandy remedy tonight.  I telephoned the dentist on the 7th January for an appointment and I have to wait until 12th February!

If it gets worse I shall look elsewhere but I have such a wonderful dentist, perhaps thats the reason she's so popular.

[Nickel]

Although doctors are notoriously bad at diagnosing dental problems they can certainly see if there is an abscess.

If there is swelling developing and the tooth is painful with pressure then this would seem the likely cause  and you will require antibiotics - so if it is easier I would suggest seeing your GP - if you have one locally ?

Take analgesia as stated on the package - the cloves would help with inflammation and decay but not with infection.

Good Luck!!!

[TWINKLE]

newbiee!

I called the Dental Association in Limoges and was told that lots of dentists in the area speak English!  I found this directory in the internet and called about 10 surgerys before finding one who according to his secretary has some British patients.  However she couldn't fit you in unttil next Wednesday.  Here's the details for the future anyway

Adam Olivier
8, Rue Edourd Vaillant
Limoges

Tel: 05 55 79 14 18

This is the dentist directory too  http://www.annuairedentaire.com/

Sorry I didn't have any luck, I know how that girl in The Devil Wears Prada feels now[:)] - oh well, there's always the handstand[;-)]

 

[newbiee]

thank you all so much for you kindness and help .

We got lucky and hae an appointment for this afternoon - you can't mess about with abcesses, so fingers crossed.

Now ... what to do with the rest of that brandy/cloves ????!!!  [6]

[newbiee]

 

It turned out to be an infection with root canal work needed. but my word .. the costs!   21 Euro for dentist fee ... 10 Euro for medication, including pain killers, mouthwash and anti-biotics ... then the actual root canal work will be about 200 Euro ... as opposed to 600 quid in the UK!!

 

And here's a tip for you .... the dentist asked if drinking hot or cold liquid helped... when hubbie said it did the dentist said straight off "I know what it is.. root canal" . 

As you know, when you have toothache, hot and cold normally hurt, as does sucking in air ..... but once temeratures HELP, this means it's gone past mere tooth decay and is a root canal problem.

[Russethouse]

So glad you got this sorted - I had a similar episode in the summer, but luckily my UK dentist is a lot cheaper than yours[:)]

[Patf]

Glad you got sorted at last. One GP I had in England believed that many physical ailments are caused by tooth or gum infections, sometimes undiagnosed. Could even cause heart problems. A couple of times he sent us for a dental check, and there was a problem, which, when treated, the physical problem cleared up. So dental infections should be dealt with asap before the poison causes problems elewhere.