Can impacted wisdom teeth cause headaches and radiating pain around the head and neck?

Doctor's Answers 1

The pressure a wisdom tooth could cause pushing against the tooth in front can be a contributing factor in headaches and neck cramps but it is not the root cause.

The cause of the pain is due to stress. The pressure only contributes to overall stress in the patient.

The basic automatic response to stress in humans is the sympathetic, or "fight or flight" reflex. Part of this reflex is that we clench our teeth in response to external or internal stress. You can see evidence of this when we lift something heavy(physical stress) we clench our teeth automatically.

Also when we are upset by another individual, we clench our teeth in frustration. The result of this over-clenching can be found in all the structures associated with chewing including the teeth, main chewing muscles and accessory chewing muscles.

Stress headaches are due to the Temporalis Muscles cramping up (which is why we massage our temples when we have them). The stiff shoulders/neck are a result of our Trapezius Muscle cramping(we stretch and massage our shoulders/neck!)

Clenching or grinding our teeth in our sleep(also called Bruxism) is the sub-conscious response to our overall stress levels. Consult your dentist who will be able to advise you on how to manage these side effects arising from high-stress levels.

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