Today, let's learn how to treat annoying toothache.
Toothache is not a disease, it can be fatal when it hurts. "This proverb illustrates that although toothache is a minor illness, it brings great pain to patients. Therefore, clarifying and mastering the pathogenesis and dialectical treatment of toothache is also a way to eliminate diseases and benefit the people.
Toothache is one of the common symptoms of various dental and periodontal diseases.
Dysfunction of the five internal organs and six viscera can directly or indirectly lead to disease, with the stomach, large intestine, and kidneys being the most closely related; The invasion of external pathogens is commonly seen in the two evils of wind and heat.
The theories of "only the wind can reach the top of the mountain" and "heat can cause heat to rise" all point out that the evil of wind and heat has the characteristic of burning upwards.
The teeth are located at the head and in a high position. If the spleen and stomach have accumulated heat, their function is not healthy, and the evil of wind and heat invades them, it can accumulate in the gum flesh of the teeth, causing qi and blood retention, blood stasis, and pain. This is caused by external pathogenic factors such as wind and heat, which is also known as' wind and fire toothache '.
Toothache is often caused by internal injuries, such as stomach fire and kidney deficiency.
If the stomach is hot and rich in nutrients, and there is excessive consumption of ointment or alcohol, it can turn heat into fire, steam the gums along the meridians, and damage the veins, leading to the onset of the disease.
The kidneys govern the bones, while the teeth are the bones. If there is a deficiency of kidney yin due to various reasons, the deficiency fire will cause the gums to burn upwards, the bone marrow to be empty, and the teeth to lose nutrition, resulting in pain.
In short, there are many reasons that can cause toothache. In addition to the three common causes of wind heat, stomach fire, and kidney deficiency mentioned above, there are also cases of wind cold, damp heat, and dental caries.
Although the causes are complex, they can be divided into two types: solid fire and virtual fire.
Solid fire includes wind fire, stomach fire, and damp heat, etc; Xu Huo mainly refers to the excess of kidney yin deficiency and fire.
The key points of differentiation and treatment methods for Type 2 are described below.
The onset of the solid fire type is more severe, with severe toothache, endless illness, or reduced pain when encountering cold, obvious redness and swelling of the gingiva, or accompanied by bleeding between the teeth. The amount is colorful and fresh, and the systemic symptoms may include headache, fever, dry mouth, thirst, bitterness, odor, red urine, constipation, red or crimson tongue, yellow and greasy coating, and a few pulse strings.
The treatment should focus on clearing the stomach and purging fire, cooling blood and relieving pain, with Qingwei powder as the main formula.
If you are prone to toothache caused by wind and fire, you can add honeysuckle, forsythia suspensa, catnip, kudzu root, and white atractylodes root to the formula, taking their properties of being refreshing and dispersing, to eliminate evil from the top and surface.
For those with stomach fire and toothache, it is advisable to add gypsum, rhubarb, Achyranthes bidentata, red peony, etc. to enhance the function of clearing stomach fire.
If toothache is accompanied by bitter mouth and swollen gums, and belongs to damp heat, gentian grass, coptis chinensis, and Sophora flavescens can be added.
The symptoms of the virtual fire type are mild, with dull toothache that occurs and stops intermittently. The gum flesh is slightly red and swollen, accompanied by gum flesh atrophy. The teeth are loose, and the pain is mild during the day and severe at night or in the afternoon. The mouth is dry and the throat is dry, the tongue is red with little coating, and the veins are thin and numerous.
The treatment is suitable for nourishing the kidneys and replenishing essence, nourishing yin and reducing fire. The main formula is Zhibai Dihuang Wan (soup).
If kidney yin deficiency is caused by a combination of stomach fire and kidney yin deficiency, treatment with Jade Maiden Decoction with modifications can be given.
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In addition, there are also cases of toothache that are not caused by fire. If one encounters cold food or inhaling cold air, it is called cold toothache, and the treatment mainly focuses on warming and tonifying kidney yang. Medicinal Dodder Seed, Gourd Seed, Psoraleae Seed, and Leek Seed are mainly used, with the addition of Piper Longum, Asarum, and Angelica dahurica. They are decocted in water and taken orally.
You can also use Warm Wind Powder (Angelica sinensis, Chuanxiong, Bai Zhi, Xixin, Gao Ben, Bi Long, Lu Fen Fang), decoct in water or rinse after decoction.
As for tooth decay and toothache, in addition to dental treatment, there is also temporary unilateral pain relief.
Firstly, immerse toothpaste into the hole, and then put a piece of leek into the cavity;
Secondly, Sichuan pepper and Xixin are used as the base, and one grain of natto is mixed with rice and mashed into a pill. The medicine cotton is wrapped in the wormhole to immediately relieve the pain.
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The differentiation of toothache requires not only understanding the local symptoms mentioned above, but also identifying the organs where the disease occurs based on the relationship between teeth and internal organs and meridians, depending on the different upper and lower parts of the toothache, in order to clearly choose medication.
Generally speaking, for those with toothache, the disease is in the stomach; Lower toothache, responsible for the large intestine; Upper incisor pain, the disease is in the Du meridian; Lower incisor pain, the disease is in the Ren meridian.
The "Great Accomplishment of Surgery" records that "when the gate is the tooth, the upper part belongs to the Du meridian, the lower part belongs to the Ren meridian, the sides are the teeth, the upper part belongs to the Yangming stomach, and the lower part belongs to the Yangming large intestine meridian", which is actually an empirical statement.
If both upper and lower teeth are painful, it is always related to the kidneys during diagnosis and treatment, and cannot be separated from the kidneys; If toothache is caused solely by gingival lesions, it should also be attributed to the spleen and stomach, as the spleen governs the flesh.
Zhao Laozeng treated a comrade in the hospital who developed toothache after diarrhea, but multiple treatments were ineffective.
Considering that the teeth are strong and without cavities, with only slight redness and swelling of the gum flesh and a pale tongue texture, it is suspected that the disease occurred after prolonged diarrhea, indicating a lack of spleen deficiency. Therefore, using the Four Gentlemen Decoction with Achyranthes Achyranthes, Asarum, and Piper Longum, two doses will complete the entire process.
Kind reminder: Everyone's physical condition is different, and the formulas provided in this article should be adjusted according to the preferences of enthusiasts. It is recommended to seek guidance from a professional doctor.