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Lost temporary filling of root canal

F

FJavier

Junior member
Joined
Sep 7, 2012
Messages
2
Hello. I had my first session for a root canal in one of my upper rear molars and the temp filling came out whilst eating. I did not notice until later I found a big hole in my tooth. Looking at it with a mirror I can see there is some filling remaining in the bottom of the cavity but there is a pinkish central area as well...???
My dentist is not available till Monday and I'm worried that I might get an infection. What should I do? Can I re-fill it up with something? Is there an indication to start taking antibiotics prophylactically? Thanks for your help!!!
 
It's not an immediate, run-to-the-emergency-dentist kind of thing. So no need to panic.

But, it depends a little on whether the root canal was complete or not. Did you have a second appointment to complete the root canal? If the root canal was complete, it's probably not an immediate problem-- your canals are sealed and fairly safe until you can get a new temporary fit. If it was not, you'll likely want to get a new filling put on fairly soon (within a few days), to avoid exposing the canals to air, food, etc.

Ring your dentist. Most have an after-hours answering service that can put you in touch with the dentist. She should be able to tell you if it's something to correct sooner than Monday.

In either case, try to avoid eating in the area of the treated tooth. And, have a dentist place a new temporary for you. I'm not aware of any safe and effective do-it-yourself "patch kits".
 
Thank you so much for your quick reply. This is a temporary filling as I have an appointment for next Friday to seal the canals and put the definitive composite one. I'll keep it clean as I'm not sure there are temporary fillings in the UK. Will ask my pharmacist tomorrow. I was wondering if I should try to put some dried toothpaste during the night?

In terms of antibiotics, any experience on using these prophylactically until I get dental attention? I can get a private prescription quite easily but my doctor wont be able to help filling the gap!
 
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