A dental perspective on headache.

Abstract

Patients complaining of pain in tooth bearing regions of the oral cavity may be suffering from a disorder unrelated to pulpal pathology. Unnecessary dental procedures may complicate the diagnosis and aggravate the underlying disorder. Referral of pain to the oral cavity and teeth may easily be explained by the extensive neurological connections of the trigeminal brain stem complex with other cranial nerves and input from the upper segment of the cervical spine. Accurate diagnosis of painful disorders can be a complex and time consuming process. The primary responsibility of the dentist in this scenario is to rule out the possibility of odontogenic pain.