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Local anesthesia not working - please help!

M

m00se11

Junior member
Joined
Oct 19, 2011
Messages
2
About 3 months ago I woke up with a terrible stomach pain which seemed to be some kind of food poisoning, 3 days later, about when the stomach pain was almost gone, I woke up with excruciating tooth pain on my molar (tooth 19) , which had a crown and a root canal previously.

Just to be safe, I went to two dentists to see what the issue was, after x rays, they both concluded I had a tooth infection on that molar, tooth 19. They recommended I get a root canal cleaning by an endodontist.

I went to one as soon as possible, she cleaned everything up, and after the surgery she said there's about a 50% chance this will recover, the problem being that my tooth might be cracked, and the infection might start up again.

I went back to the endodontist 3 months after the root canal cleaning, and she concluded that I still had an infection and the only option is that I get the tooth extracted, she also said the earlier I do it, the better.

So I went to my dentist, who would get the extraction done, thinking this issue would be finally over, the local anesthesia didn't work. My mouth felt "numb" but, it felt numb as if I was at the dentist 3 hours ago. I could still feel pain, touch, and talk fine. He injected the anesthesia a couple more times to no avail.

He said the infection is causing the anesthesia not to work. And he prescribed me with stronger anti-biotics ( I have been on amoxicillin for the past 2 weeks, 3 times a day).

As much as I respect his professional opinion, I am wondering why the anesthesia is not working, considering it worked just fine when I had a root canal cleaning 3 months ago. (And the pain felt much worse then.)

What are the odds that this is due to poor practice on his part?

PS: I was a little stressed out before he injected it, just because I never had a tooth extraction before.
 
Hi,

It is terribly disappointing when the local anaesthetic does not work and it bound to knock your confidence in your dentist's ability.
It may well be the case that the residual infection prevented the injection from working. However, sometimes it just does not work on a particular day, especially if you are feeling particularly apprehensive. The chances are, that if you go back on another day, it will be just fine. There has been research that suggests that if you take a large does of painkillers such as ibuprofen (if you are able to take this) before your appointment it can reduce the likelihood of it happening again.

I think you have a good dentist ... so give it another go.

Best of luck

Lincoln
 
Hi, I feel that what drhirst is right.

I have had problems with the local aneasthetic not working. I had no problems until I started to doubt my dentist and lost trust in him. On the last ocassion it just didnt work at all. It was as if he hadnt injected anything at all. The dentist got really upset. He carried out the treatment any way even though I repeatedly told him I was in pain. It must have knocked his confidence but It really knocked mine too. I was devastated and felt it was my fault.

I think sometimes it is to do with trust and confidence in your dentist.

De
 
Hi, I feel that what drhirst is right.

I have had problems with the local aneasthetic not working. I had no problems until I started to doubt my dentist and lost trust in him. On the last ocassion it just didnt work at all. It was as if he hadnt injected anything at all. The dentist got really upset. He carried out the treatment any way even though I repeatedly told him I was in pain. It must have knocked his confidence but It really knocked mine too. I was devastated and felt it was my fault.

I think sometimes it is to do with trust and confidence in your dentist.

De

Deb, Moose11's dentist is taking the ethical repeat-business approach here and yours is not. Moose11's dentist discontinued treatment, yours did not - if I know there can be issues with LA not working predictably, then as a trained dentist he should also know this and act accordingly. It is all pretty well explained here and nowhere do we say to continue with painful treatment
https://www.dentalfearcentral.org/fears/not-numb/
Moose11 your dentist has done the right thing by abhorting and putting you on antibiotics, chances are it will work fine at next attempt.
 
The dentist got really upset. He carried out the treatment any way even though I repeatedly told him I was in pain. It must have knocked his confidence but It really knocked mine too. I was devastated and felt it was my fault.
I think sometimes it is to do with trust and confidence in your dentist.
De

Deb
Please tell me this is an old story and not your current dentist?
 
Deb, Moose11's dentist is taking the ethical repeat-business approach here and yours is not. Moose11's dentist discontinued treatment, yours did not - if I know there can be issues with LA not working predictably, then as a trained dentist he should also know this and act accordingly. It is all pretty well explained here and nowhere do we say to continue with painful treatment
https://www.dentalfearcentral.org/fears/not-numb/
Moose11 your dentist has done the right thing by abhorting and putting you on antibiotics, chances are it will work fine at next attempt.

sorry didn't mean to upset any one. I no longer go to that dentist. \but It still worries me that another dentist will do the same. It isnt acceptable that a dentist should continue if it hurts, but that was my experience. May be my voice isnt as loud as others.
 
sorry didn't mean to upset any one. I no longer go to that dentist. \but It still worries me that another dentist will do the same. It isnt acceptable that a dentist should continue if it hurts, but that was my experience. May be my voice isnt as loud as others.

Hey
Sorry to hear about your former dentist behavior. Surely your new dentist will have to gain your trust and heal the bad experience you had.

May be my voice isnt as loud as others.

There is no question on how loud your voice needs to be. Just the fact that the the patient wants to stop should be enough, no matter how loud or persuasive is the patient.
It is better to have an agreement with the dentist before starting the treatment, and to use a clear cut signal. Raising the hand is a good one.
An even better signal would be a mechanical signal. When I treat small children I give them a device with a button that makes noise and red light as a signal to stop. Maybe you can arrange something like that as well? :)
 
well, it looks like ill be going again this monday. thanks people.
 
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