Dull pain at the base of two lower incisors, has faded after a few days

coylemj

I'm fully up to date on dental maintenance, I get a scale and polish three times a year (last visit was early June) and the dentist gives me a full examination once a year.

Felt an occasional prang of dull pain in my lower jaw last Thu/Fri and eventually narrowed it down to sensitivity at the base of one or two of my lower incisors - the two on the lower-right between the centre and the right canine. I identified the location by gently pressing one finger down on each of my lower front teeth and I pinpointed the location to those two incisors. The practical effect was that I felt pain when using my front teeth in cutting mode e.g. biting off a piece from a slice of pizza. Not intense or unbearable pain, just a dull pain. It seems to be fading away now and I don't notice anything much today, about four days later.

It isn't that I suffered any kind of impact, I didn't fall off a bike and haven't been in a pub brawl recently so it's a mystery. Anyone like to suggest possible cause(s)?

Assuming there is no pathology (decay/periodontal disease/abscess) and no fractures, it’s possible you are clenching/grinding your teeth. Grinding can make your teeth tender to bite on, it feels like the teeth don’t meet correctly when you bite and you want to push on them with your fingers. The excessive loads applied by grinding can cause temporary irritation in the tissues around the teeth which disappears after a while. If it is grinding, we all tend to do it more when we are stressed or not sleeping well. If it persists, go to your dentist.