Tinnitus After Dentist Appointment — From TMD? Advil?

[Ocean99]

Hello, I was hoping to get some advice on my experience.

Last week I went to the dentist to have 3 cavities filled. They opened my jaw a bit too much and it got locked. They immediately reduced it and it unlocked. After my 90 minute appointment, I went home, took two Advil (total 400 mg) and took a nap. Sometime later in the evening I noticed the ringing sound. It's very high pitch, probably a 10 kHz sine wave, constant. The questions I have it:

I can't tell which ear, if I had to pick, maybe right. For those with unilateral tinnitus, is it obvious which ear or hard to tell?

Also, what the heck do you think was the cause? My dentist says I have TMD, but my jaw never hurts, just clicks a little if I make it, which I don't. Or was it the 400 mg Advil; by the way I normally never take Advil or anything else.

 

[Gabriel5050]

I have tinnitus in both ears, but it should be pretty obvious which ear the noise is coming from. Try covering one ear at a time with your finger and see if you can identify which ear the ringing comes from.

Is this the first time you hear ringing in your ears? Did the dentist use any loud tools? If yes, for how long? Either way chances are the ringing will get quieter, if not go away entirely with time.

 

[hopes]

I got my tinnitus just like you 2/3 days after a dentist appointment.

My jaw was opened a lot of time and i tried to open it as widely as I could to facilitate the dentist's job during the medical exam.

Maybe the fact that we opened our mouth like that prevented our ears from protecting against noises so we got full damage during the process. Indeed, the noise wasn't particularly loud but I have had tinnitus since then.

 

[Ocean99]

Thank you for your replies.

Did the dentist use any loud tools?

Not really, just the typical drill, which he has used many times.

@hopes: What kind of tinnitus did you have? One or both ears? Has it ever stopped? Do you have hearing loss? Sorry about all the questions. Thanks