If you have ever flown with a toothache, you may understand the impact it can have on your teeth and sinus cavities. Or maybe you were scuba diving with a toothache when you felt moderate to severe pain around your tooth or the sinus cavities nearby. Regardless of where you were when you felt this pain, you know from experience the reality of it. So what causes it?

The pain you feel is due to barotrauma (“baro” – pressure; “trauma” – injury) or commonly referred to as a “squeeze.” And squeezes occur when pressures outside your body and inside your body are not the same.