Thermal Pain in Teeth: Heat Transfer, Thermomechanics and Ion Transport

Thermal pain in tissues of the body can result from a broad range of stimuli, both direct (e.g., temperature changes) and indirect (e.g., chemical and thermomechanical effects). Heating and cooling stimuli are seemingly similar, in the sense that both are transduced through the same pathway, down to the level of thermally sensitive ion channels in nociceptors. However, the perception induced by them can be quite different. For example, cold foods are known to produce more rapid and sharper pain sensations in teeth than hot foods. These seemingly disparate phenomena can be explained through coupled models of heat transfer, ion transport and thermomechanics. Such models have important implications for a broad range of clinical therapies. We present here one set of such models, and provide as an example their application to a better understanding of thermal pain in teeth.