Can An Mri Make Your Teeth Hurt? | Dental Pain Truths

Yes, an MRI can leave your teeth or jaw sore for a short time, most often from clenching, bite pressure, sinus pressure, or dental metal warming.

It’s a weird feeling: you walk out of a scan meant for your knee, back, or brain, then your teeth start aching. You didn’t bite anything hard. You didn’t drink anything cold. Yet there it is—an ache that feels like it’s coming from a tooth, your jaw joint, or the gums near a crown.

This can happen, and most of the time it’s not a sign that the scan “damaged” your teeth. More often, the scan setup and your body’s stress response line up in a way that irritates a tooth that was already touchy, or it strains your jaw muscles while you’re staying still.

Below you’ll get a clear list of causes, what the pain usually feels like, what you can do right away, and when it’s smart to call the imaging center or a dentist.

What Teeth Pain After An MRI Usually Means

Tooth pain is tricky because it can be “referred” pain. A sore jaw muscle can feel like a molar ache. A sinus flare can feel like upper tooth pressure. Even clenching your teeth for 30–60 minutes can make several teeth feel tender at once.

Most post-scan tooth or jaw pain falls into one of these buckets:

• Jaw strain from staying still: Many people brace their jaw without noticing.
• Bite pressure from positioning: Some head and neck scans use pads or supports that change your bite.
• Sinus pressure: Lying flat can shift pressure in the maxillary sinuses, which sit right above upper molars.
• Dental work reacting to the scan: Certain dental hardware can heat slightly or tug, and metal can distort images near the mouth.

One more thing: MRI centers screen for metal because strong magnetic fields can interact with certain objects and implants. Patient-facing safety guidance explains why screening matters and why you must tell staff about implanted devices or metal in or on your body. MRI safety guidance from RadiologyInfo.org summarizes the basics in plain language.

Can An Mri Make Your Teeth Hurt? Common Triggers And Patterns

Clenching Without Realizing It

The scan is loud, the space is tight, and you’re trying hard not to move. A lot of people clamp down on their teeth in a steady, low-grade way. You may not notice it until later, when your jaw muscles fatigue and the teeth feel “bruised.”

Common pattern: the teeth feel tender to chewing on both sides, or your jaw feels tired when you talk or yawn. The pain may fade over a day or two.

Jaw Joint Irritation

If you’ve ever had clicking, morning jaw stiffness, or headaches near your temples, you might be prone to TMJ irritation. Holding your jaw in a fixed position, or being asked to keep your tongue still, can flare it.

Common pattern: pain near the ear, stiffness when opening wide, or a bite that feels “off” for a few hours.

Sinus Pressure That Feels Like Tooth Pain

Your upper back teeth sit close to the maxillary sinuses. When sinus tissue is irritated from a cold, allergies, dry air, or pressure changes from lying flat, you can feel it as tooth pressure—usually in the upper molars.

Common pattern: a dull pressure in several upper teeth, worse when bending forward, with nasal stuffiness or facial pressure.

Dental Hardware Warming Or Pulling Sensations

Most fillings, crowns, and implants don’t cause a safety issue, yet dental hardware can still matter. The big issues tend to be image distortion near the face, and in some cases mild warming. A major academic radiology program notes that some dental devices can be a concern and that patients should flag dental hardware when scheduling. UCSF Radiology’s dental hardware guidance spells that out for patients.

Common pattern: a localized “hot spot” feeling near a crown or orthodontic piece during the scan, or soreness afterward where your lips or cheek pressed against a bracket.

Contrast Side Effects That Dry Your Mouth

Not every MRI uses contrast. When it does, you may feel warm, get a metallic taste, or notice mild nausea. Dry mouth can follow from stress and mouth-breathing, and that can make exposed tooth roots feel sharper to cold air or water later.

A Tooth Problem That Was Already There

Sometimes the scan doesn’t “cause” the dental pain—it just lines up with the moment a small crack, loose filling edge, or inflamed nerve crosses your personal pain threshold. Clenching can be the final nudge that makes a borderline tooth start shouting.

If the pain is sharp, one-sided, or triggered by cold on a single tooth, treat it as a dental issue until proven otherwise.

What To Do Right Away When Your Teeth Hurt After A Scan

Start with simple, low-risk steps. The goal is to calm irritated muscles and rule out red-flag symptoms.

Step 1: Check The Pattern

• Many teeth sore, both sides: clenching or jaw strain is likely.
• Upper teeth pressure with stuffy nose: sinus pressure is likely.
• One tooth sharp to cold or biting: a tooth crack, cavity, or nerve irritation is more likely.
• Burning spot on gum or cheek: think of friction, pressure, or a heated metal point during scanning.

Step 2: Relax Your Jaw On Purpose

Let your tongue rest on the roof of your mouth, just behind the front teeth. Let your teeth separate slightly. This “lips together, teeth apart” posture can calm jaw muscles fast.

Step 3: Use Heat Or Cold The Right Way

For jaw muscle soreness, a warm compress along the jawline can feel good. For a specific tooth that feels inflamed, cool packs on the cheek may help more. Keep sessions short and comfortable.

Step 4: Choose Gentle Foods For A Day

Skip hard, sticky, or crunchy foods for 24 hours. Chew on the side that feels calmer. If the pain drops when you go soft, clenching or jaw strain was likely part of it.

Step 5: Use OTC Pain Relief Only If It Fits You

Over-the-counter pain medicine can help some people, but it’s not for everyone. If you have kidney disease, ulcers, are pregnant, take blood thinners, or have been told to avoid certain meds, follow your clinician’s instructions. If you’re not sure what’s safe for you, call your clinic or pharmacist.

Also: if contrast was used and you feel unwell afterward, follow the aftercare instructions you were given. General patient guidance from the UK’s health service covers what an MRI involves and what to do if you feel unwell during or after the scan. NHS information on MRI scans is a solid baseline read.

Causes, Clues, And What Helps

Likely Cause	Typical Clues	What Usually Helps
Jaw clenching during the scan	Both-side tooth tenderness; jaw fatigue; soreness when chewing	Soft foods, warm compress, jaw relaxation posture
TMJ irritation	Pain near ear; clicking; stiffness opening wide	Heat, gentle jaw stretches, avoiding wide yawns
Sinus pressure	Upper molar pressure; worse bending forward; nasal stuffiness	Hydration, saline rinse, treating allergy/cold symptoms
Dental hardware pressure from positioning	Sore spot on lip/cheek; tenderness near brackets or a retainer edge	Rinse with water, wax for braces, soft diet for a day
Mild warming near certain metal work	Warm or tingling feeling during scan; localized soreness after	Tell imaging staff; note exact tooth/location for your record
Dry mouth from stress or mouth-breathing	Root sensitivity; stinging with cold air or water	Sips of water, sugar-free gum, avoid acidic drinks
Cracked tooth or high filling edge (unrelated timing)	Single-tooth sharp pain; pain on release after biting	Dental visit; avoid chewing that side
Inflamed tooth nerve (pulp irritation)	Throbbing; lingering cold pain; pain wakes you at night	Dental evaluation; treat decay or infection if present

How To Prepare So It Doesn’t Happen Again

Tell The Scheduler About Dental Hardware Early

If you have braces, a permanent retainer, a palate expander, implants, or magnetic dental attachments, mention it when booking. This is not just about safety—it can affect scan quality near the head and neck. Many centers can plan around it or adjust sequences.

Ask For A Bite-Relaxed Setup

If your scan involves your head, ask the technologist if you can keep your jaw relaxed with your teeth slightly apart, as long as it won’t affect the images. A small change can reduce clenching.

Use Ear Protection And Focus On Slow Breathing

Noise and tension feed clenching. Ear protection helps. Slow breathing can help too—steady in, steady out—while keeping your tongue resting gently near the front palate.

Remove Removable Dental Items Unless Staff Says Otherwise

Take out removable retainers, aligners, dentures with metal parts, and piercings unless the imaging team tells you to keep them in. Removal can reduce pressure points and reduce image distortion for facial scans.

If You Have Mercury Amalgam And You’re In A Higher-Risk Group

This isn’t about MRI causing tooth pain, yet it comes up in real life because people worry about metal and mercury. The FDA has issued recommendations for certain higher-risk groups regarding mercury-containing dental amalgam. If you’re pregnant, planning pregnancy, nursing, have kidney disease, or fall into other higher-risk categories described by the FDA, it can be worth discussing filling material choices with your dentist at your next routine visit. FDA recommendations on mercury-containing dental amalgam lay out who those groups are.

When To Call The Imaging Center Or A Dentist

Most post-scan soreness fades within 24–72 hours. If it’s trending down, that’s a good sign. If it’s trending up, treat it seriously.

What You Notice	Why It Matters	Next Step
Tooth tenderness on both sides that eases day by day	Fits muscle strain or clenching	Soft foods, heat, jaw relaxation; monitor
Upper tooth pressure plus sinus symptoms	Fits sinus-driven referred pain	Hydration, saline rinse; see a clinician if sinus symptoms persist
One tooth has sharp pain on biting or with cold	Could be crack, cavity, or nerve irritation	Book a dental exam soon
Throbbing tooth pain, swelling, fever, or foul taste	Possible infection	Urgent dental or medical care
Burning spot on gum/cheek, blistering, or scabbed area	Possible pressure injury or heat irritation	Call the imaging center; ask how to document the event
New numbness, weakness, or severe headache after a head scan	Not typical for dental strain	Urgent medical care

What To Tell Your Dentist So You Get Answers Faster

Dental pain stories can get vague fast, and vagueness slows diagnosis. If you end up calling a dentist, bring clean details:

• The exact day and time of the scan
• Whether the scan used contrast
• Whether the scan involved your head/neck or another body part
• Where the pain sits (upper right molars, one crowned tooth, front teeth, jaw joint)
• What triggers it (cold, bite pressure, chewing, yawning)
• Whether the pain is getting better or worse each day

If you felt a warm spot during the scan, say that plainly and point to the location. Imaging staff can also note it in your record, which helps if you ever need another scan with the same dental hardware.

A Simple Reality Check Before You Worry

If your teeth hurt after an MRI, it’s easy to assume the machine “did something” to them. In most cases, the more boring explanation wins: you clenched, you tensed your jaw, your sinuses acted up, or a sensitive tooth got irritated by pressure and stress.

Your best move is to watch the pattern for a day, treat it like muscle strain at first, and switch to dental evaluation fast if the pain is sharp, single-tooth, or paired with swelling or fever.