Does Coronavirus Affect Teeth?

While the uncertainty, quarantine processes and social isolation we experience due to the coronavirus, which continues to affect the world, negatively affect our psychology, in the full sense of the word, distress also causes us to "squeeze our teeth" due to stress.

While the uncertainty, quarantine process and social isolation we experience due to the coronavirus, which continues to affect the world, affect our psychology negatively, it literally causes us to "squeeze our teeth" due to stress. Stress and anxiety that we can keep under control during the day; At night, it can manifest itself as clenching and grinding teeth during sleep. Dentist Dr. Racha Ghazal provided information on the subject.

People who bite their teeth often have jaw, head, neck and ear pain. Ringing in the ears, 'clicking' sound when opening the jaw, waking up painful and tired in the morning are among the complaints. In addition, in these people, a wider, angular shape of the lower face area, abrasion and breakage in teeth and fillings can be observed. The tooth fractures we encountered during the pandemic period are mostly not in the front teeth due to impact or acute trauma, but in the molar and small molars in the posterior region where the chewing force is higher. Because the force applied when clenching teeth at night is much more than when chewing during the day.

Just as the arm muscles get stronger when we exercise, and the muscles become prominent when viewed from the outside, the jaw muscles become stronger due to excessive tooth clenching in bruxism. said.

Dr. Racha Ghazal, "Often they are not aware of it"

Stating that people with bruxism problems are generally unaware of this situation, Dr. “Pain caused by intense tightening of the jaw muscles is also confused with migraine and fibromyalgia. During the pandemic process, behavioral guidance can be made with awareness, and supports for relaxation of the muscles can be used to prevent daytime teething. At night, done by dentists; Treatment methods such as intraoral plaques prepared for the teeth, jaw and facial muscles, botox applications to the jaw muscle and the arrangement of the chewing surfaces of the teeth can be tried. In addition to bruxism, tooth decays and gum diseases are among the prominent dental problems during the pandemic period.

The infection that causes the hard tissue of the tooth to gradually soften and become ruined is called "caries". If left untreated, it can lead to abscess, facial swelling and pain. By delaying tooth brushing and oral hygiene, microorganisms adhere to the tooth and dental plaque forms. With the increase of plaque accumulation, harder tartar is formed and cannot be removed from teeth by brushing. In gum disease, which we call gingivitis, the gums bleed easily, the color turns from pink to red, and teeth tenderness may occur.

When this problem is not treated, the infection in the gum affects the jawbone surrounding the teeth and the teeth may start to shake. It is known that gingival bleeding is based on vitamin C deficiency in people who regularly brush their teeth, use dental floss, and take care of their mouth and teeth.