2 Surprising Ways Your Teeth & Sinuses Can Affect Each Other

While there are frequent new discoveries into how oral health affects the rest of the human body, the fact that sinuses and teeth can affect each other has been known for a long time. After all, your upper teeth and maxillary sinuses are separated by just a thin bone. This means that some problems that seem like dental problems may be sinus problems instead and some sinus problems can actually be caused by dental problems. 

Read on to learn about two ways your teeth and sinuses affect each other, which may surprise you. 

1. Sinus Infections Can Be Caused by Tooth Infections

If you have been putting off having a root canal performed on a chronically infected tooth or having it extracted and have recently developed clogged nasal passages and/or a runny nose, then you may think that they are two separate problems that are not linked. After all, spring has just arrived in he United States, so you may suspect you are just having a flare of seasonal allergies or just have the lingering symptoms of a cold you developed over the winter. 

However, when some upper teeth are infected, the infection can spread to the maxillary sinuses. Symptoms of sinus infections can vary from mild to extreme, but it is not unusual for them to mimic the symptoms of seasonal allergies or colds. 

While it is always important to have an infected tooth taken care of by a dentist in some way as quickly as possible, realize that if the infection has spread to your sinuses, this is a red flag that the tooth is beginning to affect your overall health and a visit to the dentist ASAP is important for preventing more serious complications of an infected tooth that is not treated. 

2. Sinus Congestion Can Cause Dental Pain

If you visit your dental regularly for check-ups and know you don't have any tooth infections or cavities and recently developed tooth or jaw pain, then you may be wondering if an emergency visit to the dentist is in order. While it is a good idea to have all new jaw or tooth pain examined by your dentist to make sure the teeth are still healthy, if you are also experiencing sinus congestion, then this may be the cause of your dental pain. 

When sinuses become irritated due to allergies or infection, they can swell and put a lot of pressure on the bone underneath them that separates your sinuses and your teeth. This pressure can then cause your teeth to hurt, even if they are otherwise in perfect condition. 

Remember that not only can your oral health affect the health of the rest of your body, but also that due to your mouth's close proximity to your sinuses, many symptoms that feel like dental problems can be caused by your sinuses and some dental problems can cause sinus problems. This means that when dealing with new sinus conditions, it is best to report them to both your primary care doctor and dentist to make sure the root cause of the problem is detected and treated. 

To learn more about treatment, contact resources like Kyle J Frisinger DMD.