History Main / TheToothHurts

* Creator/EdgarAllanPoe's short story "Berenice" is about a young man with a tendency to go into trance states where he can't remember his actions afterward and a growing obsession with the teeth of his [[KissingCousins cousin/fiancée]] Berenice. Eventually he wakes up from one such state, surrounded by bloody dental implements and holding a box full of Berenice's teeth.

* ''Fanfic/DenTaePhobia'' is about Tae having terrible toothaches but he's too scared of going to the dentist to fixing, making the problem worse. His pain worsens a lot when he tries to eat popcorn in spite of trying to be careful.

* Dry socket. It's ''exactly'' what it sounds like. Basically, after a tooth extraction, a blood clot forms over the empty socket that begins the healing process. However, depending on how well the patient followed their dentist's instructions, the clot can actually become dislodged, exposing the empty socket and ''the jaw bone'' underneath. It is a painful, long-lasting experience that delays the healing process by quite a bit. The pain is so severe that it can be felt across the sufferer's face, and can be ''immobilizing''. Thankfully, most tooth extractions have only a 5 percent chance of leading to this. The only exceptions are the lower wisdom teeth, in which dry socket happens ''30 percent'' of the time.

->''"Oh, please don't worry. [[FalseReassurance I'm not going into that cavity]]. That nerve's already dying. A live, freshly-cut nerve is infinitely more sensitive. So I'll just drill into a healthy tooth until I reach the pulp...unless, of course, you can tell me that it's safe."''

* In ''Series/ParksAndRecreation'', certified RatedMForManly Ron Swanson nonchalantly yanks out a sore tooth with pliers in the middle of a meeting, prompting horrified screams from onlookers.

* Wario's story in ''VideoGame/WarioWare'' ''Touched!'' has him visit the dentist after getting a cavity from gorging on chocolate bars. After his teeth are healed the dentist tells him to not eat sweets for the time being but then he comes across a bakery and [[TooDumbToLive decides to eat pie]] even going as far as to dismiss what he was told and [[HereWeGoAgain gets another cavity]].

->''"We are the ones you should be fearing, come in the night and take your teeth away. Now sew up your mouth and go to sleep, 'cause we'll be there soon to break your heart and spite your face."''
-->-- "The Ones" by '''Aesthetic Perfection'''

* One of the methods of the Sadistic Dentist of Asian Persuasion from ''Series/{{Alias}}''.
* In the third season of ''Series/TheAmericans'', Elizabeth hurts a tooth while in a fight, and when the pain becomes to much to bear, Phillip ends up pulling it out (they can't go to a regular dentist for fear of capture).

Just like with [[EyeScream eyes]], [[{{Fingore}} fingers]], [[ImpromptuTracheotomy throats]], [[AgonyOfTheFeet toes]], and [[GroinAttack genitals]], teeth are an extremely sensitive part of us that we [[NightmareFuel can't bear to see get damaged]], whether our own or other people's. Just like with fingers and toes, we have so many of them, giving us so many ways to feel the pain (even worse if a DepravedDentist is involved). However, [[DIYDentistry someone may pull a tooth for a good reason]], such as to relieve pain. [[WorstAid Though, this usually isn't a very good idea.]]

* In ''Film/MarathonMan'', Szell drills into one of Levy's teeth every time he gets an answer he doesn't like.

*** In "[[Recap/TheLoudHouseS4E19SisterActHouseFlip Sister Act]]", where [[PolarOppositeTwins Lana and Lola]] [[TwinSwitch switch places]] to get out of things one twin dislikes but the other enjoys, they try dressing up as each other once more so the former can avoid a dentist appointment and the latter can avoid a doctor's appointment. [[DidntThinkThisThrough It backfires on both of them the next day]], with Lana getting an abscessed tooth, preventing her from eating a massive sundae she won in a recycling contest, and Lola [[SickEpisode coming down with a nasty case of the flu]], preventing her from competing in a pageant. [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome Had the twins gone to their respective appointments as themselves in the first place, their respective medical professionals would've caught and immediately treated the early warning signs of these ailments before they got any worse]]. The twins are forced to fess up to their parents of what they did so their doctor and dentist don't lose their medical licenses for negligence and [[GrowingUpSucks get a big scolding for their irresponsibility]], and then have to attend the appointments they avoided so they can get healthy again.

* In ''Anime/{{Pokemon}}'', Brock hurts his teeth when he mistakes a plastic cake for a real one and bites into it.

* Dry socket. It's ''exactly'' what it sounds like. Basically, after a tooth extraction, a blood clot forms over the empty socket that begins the healing process. However, depending on how well the patient followed their dentist's instructions, the clot can actually become dislodged, exposing the empty socket and ''the jaw bone'' underneath. It is a painful, long-lasting experience that delays the healing process by quite a bit. Thankfully, most tooth extractions have only a 5 percent chance of leading to this. The only exceptions are the lower wisdom teeth, in which dry socket happens ''30 percent'' of the time.

* Dry socket. It's ''exactly'' what it sounds like. Basically, after a tooth extraction, a blood clot forms over the empty socket that begins the healing process. However, depending on how well the patient followed their dentist's instructions, the clot can actually become dislodged, exposing the empty socket and ''the jaw bone'' underneath. It is a painful, long-lasting experience that delays the healing process by quite a bit. Thankfully, most tooth extractions have only a %5 chance of leading to this. The only exceptions are the lower wisdom teeth, in which dry socket happens ''%30'' of the time.

*** In "[[Recap/TheLoudHouseS4E19SisterActHouseFlip Sister Act]]", where [[PolarOppositeTwins Lana and Lola]] [[TwinSwitch switch places]] to get out of things one twin dislikes but the other enjoys, they try dressing up as each other once more so the former can avoid a dentist appointment and the latter can avoid a doctor's appointment. [[DidntThinkThisThrough It backfires on both of them the next day]], with Lana getting an abscessed tooth, preventing her from eating a massive sundae she won in a recycling contest, and Lola [[SickEpisode coming down with a nasty case of the flu]], preventing her from competing in a pageant. [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome Had the twins gone to their respective appointments as themselves in the first place, their respective medical professionals would've caught and immediately treated the early warning signs of these ailments before they got any worse]]. The twins are forced to fess up to their parents of what they did so their doctor and dentist don't lose their medical licenses for negligence and have to attend the appointments they avoided so they can get healthy again.

*** In "[[Recap/TheLoudHouseS4E19SisterActHouseFlip Sister Act]]", where [[PolarOppositeTwins Lana and Lola]] [[TwinSwitch switch places]] to get out of things one twin dislikes but the other enjoys, they try dressing up as each other once more so the former can avoid a dentist appointment and the latter can avoid a doctor's appointment. [[DidntThinkThisThrough It backfires on both of them the next day]], with Lana getting an abscessed tooth, preventing her from eating a massive sundae she won in a recycling contest, and Lola [[SickEpisode coming down with a nasty case of the flu]], preventing her from competing in a pageant. [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome Had the twins gone to their respective appointments in the first place, their respective medical professionals would've immediately treated the early warning signs of these ailments before they got any worse]]. The twins are forced to fess up to their parents of what they did so their doctor and dentist don't lose their medical licenses for negligence and have to attend the appointments they avoided so they can get healthy again.