Wisdom teeth can cause migraines, but the connection is indirect and varies from one patient to another. In most situations, wisdom teeth do not directly cause migraines. However, they can cause conditions such as inflammation, jaw tension, and nerve irritation. These conditions can lead to or worsen migraine attacks.
Wisdom Teeth And Migraines Explained
Wisdom teeth are the backmost teeth that often develop between the ages of 17 and 25. They usually lack sufficient space to emerge properly. As a result, they can grow at an angle, get stuck under the gums, push against other teeth, or cause swelling or infection.
On the other hand, migraine is not just a headache; it is a neurological condition that can cause throbbing head pain, usually on one side. It can also cause nausea and vomiting, visual disturbances, and sensitivity to light and sound. Migraines involve brain chemicals and nerve pathways. This is why issues in other parts of the body, like the jaw, can trigger them.
Ways In Which Wisdom Teeth Can Cause Migraines
Dentists claim that impacted or growing wisdom teeth can cause inflammation, pressure, and nerve irritation. This can trigger or worsen migraine signs in some patients. However, not everyone with wisdom tooth issues suffers migraines. Additionally, not all migraines are connected to teeth. Some of the ways in which wisdom teeth can cause migraines include:
Stress And Sleep Disruption
Regular dental pain can disrupt sleep and increase stress levels. These are the key triggers of migraines. Even indirectly, wisdom tooth issues can worsen migraine frequency through lifestyle disruption.
Chronic Pain And Migraine Sensitization
Your nervous system becomes more sensitive over time if wisdom tooth pain persists. This is called central sensitization, in which your brain becomes more reactive to pain signals. As a result, headaches occur more easily, and migraines can become more regular or severe.
Nerve Irritation or Compression
Wisdom teeth are positioned adjacent to vital nerves in the jaw. If your tooth presses on a nerve or causes swelling around it, it can cause sharp or radiating pain. This pain can spread to the head. Nerve irritation can trigger or mimic migraines, particularly when the trigeminal nerve is involved.
Sinus Involvement
Upper wisdom sits close to the sinuses. If they are pushed upward or become inflamed, they can increase sinus pressure and cause facial fullness. As a result, you can suffer a sinus headache or a migraine with pressure around the eyes and forehead.
Infection And Immune Response
Partially emerged wisdom teeth are susceptible to infection, like pericoronitis, abscesses, and gum infections. These infections can cause increased pain signals, immune system activation, and intense inflammation. The effects will, in turn, heighten nervous system sensitivity and lower the threshold for migraine attacks. You can experience whole-head pain even for a localized dental infection.
Muscle Tension Spreading To The Head
Pain from wisdom teeth often triggers unconscious reactions, such as tightening of facial and neck muscles, teeth grinding, and jaw clenching. This could create a chain reaction, including jaw tension, neck stiffness, scalp tension, and headache. This tension can escalate into a migraine attack in patients who are sensitive to headaches.
Jaw Misalignment And Temporomandibular Joint (TMJ)
Sometimes, wisdom teeth can shift other teeth, change your bite, or force the jaw into an unnatural position. As a result, the temporomandibular joint will be affected. If the temporomandibular joint is strained, jaw muscles become tense. Movement will also become painful, and pressure builds around the ears and temples. This can cause tension headaches or trigger migraines in patients susceptible to them. Temporomandibular joint dysfunction is a major connection between dental issues and migraines.
Impacted Wisdom Teeth And Pressure Build-Up
An impacted wisdom tooth arises when the tooth pushes against nearby teeth, grows sideways or at an angle, or is trapped under the gum or bone. This imposes persistent pressure on the jaw, causing local tissue damage and chronic irritation. Pressure also continuously stimulates nerve endings, which can cause persistent migraines or headaches. You can experience recurring migraine-like pain if the pressure is prolonged.
Inflammation
When wisdom teeth develop, particularly if impacted, they often cause gum inflammation. Inflammation causes swelling, the release of inflammatory chemicals, and increased sensitivity of nearby nerves. Inflammatory chemicals can trigger migraine episodes in sensitive patients. These chemicals can also activate pain pathways in your brain. Migraines themselves are associated with inflammation of the nerve pathways.
Nerve Connection
The main connection is the trigeminal nerve, which is responsible for sensation in the teeth, face, and parts of the head. The trigeminal nerve has branches that supply the teeth and gums, the upper and lower jaws, the forehead, the temples, and the area around the eyes. When a wisdom tooth causes irritation or pain, that signal moves along the trigeminal nerve. As a result, your brain can interpret it as head pain instead of tooth pain. This is also known as referred pain. Pain that often begins in the jaw can feel like pain behind the eyes, a one-sided headache, or temple throbbing that mimics a migraine.
Symptoms Your Migraine Could Be Associated With Wisdom Teeth
When wisdom teeth and migraine issues occur at the same time, it can be challenging to tell if they are connected. However, you can experience specific patterns and signs that indicate your migraine can be connected to issues with your wisdom teeth. The common signs include:
Overlap With Classic Migraine Symptoms
You will still experience true migraine signs even if wisdom teeth cause them. Some of the signs include nausea, sensitivity to light and sound, and throbbing pain. This can occur because dental triggers can activate migraine pathways in the brain.
Relief After Dental Treatment
One of the major signs is what happens after treatment. You will know a migraine is associated with wisdom teeth if you experience a reduced headache after removing the tooth, treating the infection, and cleaning the area.
Intermittent Flare-Ups Instead Of Constant Pain
Wisdom teeth associated with headaches often come and go, flaring up when the tooth is irritated. Triggers can include gum inflammation, poor oral hygiene, and eating hard foods. This pattern differs from that of chronic migraines, which can follow neurological or hormonal cycles.
Sinus-Like Pressure In The Upper Wisdom Teeth
Upper wisdom teeth sit near the sinuses. If affected, you will experience pain around the eyes, pressure in the forehead, and a heavy feeling in the face. This is similar to sinus headaches and migraines with facial pressure.
Neck And Shoulder Tension Linked To Jaw Discomfort
Jaw issues usually spread tension to the surrounding muscles. You could experience shoulder stiffness, tight neck muscles, and headaches starting at the base of your skull. The muscle chain reaction can cause tension headaches and escalate into migraines.
Facial Swelling or Tenderness
Check for swelling near the jaw, warmth around the area, and tenderness when pressing the cheek. The above symptoms indicate infection or inflammation. Facial inflammation can irritate the cranial nerves and cause migraine-like pain.
Pain That Does Not Respond Well To Typical Migraine Treatment
If your headaches fail to clear with migraine medication but improve with dental treatment and anti-inflammatory treatment, this indicates the main cause can be dental instead of neurological.
Consistent Bad Breath or Bad Taste
Persistent bad breath or bad taste is a sign of infection around a wisdom tooth. This is caused by gum infection, bacterial build-up, and food trapped under the gum. Infections trigger signs of pain and inflammation that can reduce your threshold for migraine attacks.
Headaches That Coincide With Wisdom Tooth Eruption
Sometimes, migraines can start when your wisdom teeth start developing. Headaches can also flare up when the gum becomes swollen, and the tooth feels like it is coming in. A clear time link between headaches and tooth eruption is a strong sign of a connection.
Ear Pain or Pressure Without An Ear Infection
The ear and jaw share nerve pathways. You will experience pressure around the ear, fullness in the ear, and an earache, even if there is no actual ear infection. This type of pain arises from the wisdom teeth and jaw and can escalate into the head, mimicking a migraine.
Jaw Stiffness or Difficulty Opening Your Mouth
Temporomandibular joints can be significantly affected by wisdom teeth. Check for limited jaw movement, pain when opening your mouth, popping or clicking sounds, and jaw tightness. The above symptoms indicate temporomandibular joint strain, which can cause tension in the head and migraines.
Tender, Swollen, or Bleeding Gums At The Back Of The Mouth
Sometimes, you can experience signs in your gums behind your last molars. Some signs include pain on touch, bleeding, redness, and swelling. The above signs can indicate an impacted wisdom tooth, irritation from an erupting tooth, and infection. The dental problem can be a trigger if these signs occur alongside migraines.
Pain Triggered or worsened By Chewing
Wisdom tooth issues are mechanical; they get worse with movement. Your headache can worsen when you chew, bite down, or open your mouth wide. This shows the pain can be coming from the jaw joint or a tooth. Chewing alone cannot trigger migraines.
One-Sided Headaches Matching The Tooth Pain
Migraines are usually one-sided. You can experience a persistent headache on one side of your head, and the same side may have gum swelling or a painful or erupting wisdom tooth. This is a clear indicator of the connection between migraines and wisdom teeth.
Pain That Starts In The Jaw And Spreads To The Head
If your pain begins from the back of your mouth and spreads to your temple, your eyes, and across one side of your head, it indicates referred pain. This is where the brain interprets dental pain as head pain.
Treatment Of Migraines
Migraines associated with wisdom teeth can be challenging because they involve both neurological and dental factors. Not all headaches related to wisdom teeth are true migraines. However, pressure or irritation from misaligned or impacted third molars can cause migraine-like symptoms. The best treatment should focus on dealing with the main dental issues while also managing inflammation and pain.
Proper diagnosis is important. Your dental expert will use X-rays to establish whether the wisdom teeth are infected, impacted, or pressing against adjacent nerves. The teeth can irritate surrounding tissues when they are growing at awkward angles or are partially erupted. This can also affect the trigeminal nerve, which is closely linked with migraine pain. Identifying this relationship helps guide the right treatment plan.
- Extraction of the problematic wisdom teeth is one of the most common and definitive treatments. Removal is often recommended if the teeth are impacted, causing crowding, or leading to repeated infections. You will experience a substantial reduction or complete relief from migraine symptoms once the source of inflammation or pressure is removed. This procedure is often performed under local anesthesia, general anesthesia, or sedation, depending on the complexity. Recovery can last a few days to several weeks. Proper oral hygiene and following post-operative instructions are important during recovery. This will help prevent issues, like dry socket.
- Medications play a major role in managing symptoms before or after tooth removal. Your dentists can recommend anti-inflammatory drugs, like ibuprofen, to relieve pain and reduce swelling. The dentist can also recommend antibiotics if you have an infection. Antibiotics are used to clear the infection and prevent it from spreading. Your dental expert could also recommend migraine-specific medications, like triptans, if migraines are severe. Triptans help control neurological symptoms. Over-the-counter pain relievers can manage mild migraines. However, consult a professional if you experience persistent or severe pain.
- Surgical treatment and supportive therapies can also help clear migraines.
- Applying cold compresses to the jaw area can numb the pain and reduce inflammation.
- Warm saltwater rinses can also be used to keep the area clean and soothe irritated tissues. This is important if the gums around the wisdom teeth are inflamed.
- Proper oral hygiene, gentle brushing around the affected area, and regular flossing are important. This prevents further irritation or infection that can worsen migraines.
Find an Experienced Dentist Near Me
Impacted wisdom teeth can contribute to migraines by causing nerve irritation, jaw pressure, and muscle strain, which can worsen or trigger migraine symptoms. Impacted wisdom teeth occur when wisdom teeth grow at an angle or do not fully emerge, becoming trapped beneath the jawbone or the gums. This can cause localized strain on jaw muscles, inflammation, and pressure on surrounding teeth, mimicking migraines or worsening symptoms.
If you suspect that your migraines are connected to your wisdom teeth in Encino, CA, our dentists at Lasting Impressions Dental Spa can help. Contact us at 818-751-5100 to speak to one of our dentists.
