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Do I really need root canal work?

Topcat

Topcat

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 11, 2009
Messages
238
Hi I found this forum after searching the web due to anxiety about the dentist telling me I need root canal work.

I had a crown fitted to my very back upper tooth 18 months ago, not due to pain but because the back of the tooth had worn down an filling wouldnt stick to it so everytime I ate food got stuck in between my teeth causing my gum to become sore. The dentist didnt do any root canal work as she said it wasnt needed.

Over the Xmas period my crown came away and the tooth was sensitive as you would expect but just for a second when I drank hot or cold drinks, I went to the dentist an she said that there was some decay on the tooth (I was not amused as no one had explained that you can still get tooth decay under a crown and I had paid £300 for a white crown) she took an xray and said that I had slight infection on the root and would need root canal treatment or an extraction and worse apparently I have extremely curved roots which will make both procedures difficult :(

The thing that I am having problems accepting is that I have had no pain at all, it doesnt hurt to cheq food or bite down on it, I dont have any swelling and now I have had a temporary filling I have no sensitivity, when she tapped the tooth really hard there was no pain or any form of discomfort and I have no probelms cleaning the tooth so I am wondering why I cant have a filling, antibiotics for the slight infection and then a new crown fitted especially as I have read that treating curved roots is likely to end up with an extraction anyway :confused:

Any advice would be greatly appreciated - thank you :)
 
Well I just had another sleepless night worrying about this stupid tooth, I was really hoping to see a load of replies saying it sounds like I dont need any root canal work done :cry:
 
antibiotics and a filling won't cure the infection. You need root treatment for that.
 
antibiotics and a filling won't cure the infection. You need root treatment for that.


But surely if there is an infection I would have some kind of symptom :confused:
 
But your dentist said you have an infection visible on your x ray.

You had decay on the tooth and the delicate uncrowned tooth was also exposed to bacteria when the crown fell off. If a crown is fitted well I don't think a tooth is as likely to decay, but if you have a crown it doesn't mean you will never have decay. My endo explained that bacteria are most likely to get to the root during treatment (preparation for crowns). My own understanding (and I may be wrong) is that crowns usually only fall off if there is decay underneath. So I reckon, either there was decay present when your crown was fitted 18 months ago or the crown did not fit well and bacteria entered around the margins causing decay.

It's really up to you whether you have treatment at this stage or not. If I were you I'd get a second opinion and if you do need root treatment then go to a specialist endodontist. It's not cheap but it's the best thing to do if you want to save the tooth.
 
forgot to mention that you can have an infection with no symptoms at all and you can even have an infection without it showing up on an x ray. So people end up in agony and a dentist can't see the problem on an xray or the dentist sees it clearly but the patient does not feel a thing. I had this all explained to me when I was fretting about something similar.
 
You have two choices...extraction or root canal.

The extraction is probably easiest, but the root canal may be the best for the long term. It would also be cheapest in the long term if you ever consider putting an implant in.

As for difficulty with curved roots, it may be more difficult, but that does not mean it is extremely difficult. I had an extraction with curved roots and the tooth was broken off. Instead of taking two minutes to take out, it took four. Big deal.

If you do a root canal, then I don't think you will find the difficulty of the procedure much more difficult than that of a filling. It just takes longer.

The procedure is simply really. The dentist cleans out the root and then fills it up with something else. In a filling, he drills a hole and fills it.

I think you will find that once it is over, it will be much easier than expected. The most difficult part now is the waiting.
 
Well my fear has started to turn to anger now - I am convinced that there was a problem with the fitting of the crown as the surrounding gum has become tender 3 times in the 18 months that I had it and each time the dentist cleaned the area and it got better.

The problem I have is my dentist who fitted the crown is on maternity leave and her sister is her stand in, when I asked why the decay had got there she said that this can just happen but thinking about it, how can it happen unless it was a bad job.

I have also read that dentists should never diagnose root canal just on xray alone, arggg I am so confused, I have one week to go until I am supposed to have root treatment and I am really not sure I trust the dentist now.
 
well you could argue they did a bad job and they could argue you did not look after it properly. Suing a dentist is not easy and that is why they get away with such shoddy work. (present wonderfully professional company excepted of course!). If I were to sit here and get bitter about my three root canals which I technically did not need at all because I had perfectly healthy teeth before dentists started fiddling with them, I would be a very bitter nelly indeed!

At the end of the day you are where you are and from the sounds of it you should really get a second opinion from someone who will do additional checks to test the vitality of the tooth (e.g. medieval hot and cold tests and banging a rubber hammer thingy on the tooth to see if you wince). I nearly had an unnecessary root treatment in august last year and I know the dentists on here are totally fed up with my pontification about the fact that I was sent down the root canal route and it was all fixed with a very cheap filling by a dentist who specialises in minimally invasive dentistry. I would always strongly recommend you seek a second opinion because two dentists = 3 opinions :) (unless there is a blue moon, red sun etc and they happen to agree!)
 
I have been looking at a list of NHS dentists in my area and do not have a clue which one to pick!!

I was never given any cleaning instructions when I had the crown, but have always flossed around and brushed the crown twice a day.
 
I have been looking at a list of NHS dentists in my area and do not have a clue which one to pick!!

I was never given any cleaning instructions when I had the crown, but have always flossed around and brushed the crown twice a day.

doesn't really matter who you pick, they will be qualified. Does not really matter if NHS or private, a second opinion should not cost much. If you tell them it's just for an opinion an nhs dentist may see you quickly.

If you had the original treatment on the NHS there is probably a route for you to make a complaint using the NHS complaints procedure. However it sounds as though the evidence has been destroyed if your crown fell off.

Also £300 for a white crown on a back tooth does not sound like an nhs price/procedure. Dentists often mix private work with their nhs work and if you go for private cosmetic work from an nhs dentist because it will look better (e.g. a white crown outside your smile line) then you have no recourse to complain to the nhs direct as it's outside their contract. That's what originally happened to me many years ago. People don't know how the system works until they hit a problem. Many dentists don't tell you about aftercare or the consquences of cosmetic work etc. unless you ask. That's why these days I always question any work and want to be fully informed. It's also why I recommend a second opinion and going to a dentist you feel you can trust. Be they private or NHS. But as far as nhs dentistry is concerned many dentists are not happy with the new contract and nhs dentistry has always been limited in choice of material etc.
 
I have called my dentist to say I am unhappy and waiting for her to call me back, I have also called several oher dentists I can be seen by one on Friday but have been told that my dentist may de-register me is I do this :confused: my children like our dentist and I am worried now that we may be asked to leave.

I cant stop shaking, feel sick and have a bad stomach today thats just thinking about talking to the dentist what on earth will I be like by next Tuesday when i am supposed to have the root work started, what makes it harder is not having any pain as I dont feel like I really need anything done.
 
You're in England or Wales?

You aren't registered anywhere, registration was abolished in England when the new dental contract started in 2007.
 
You're in England or Wales?

You aren't registered anywhere, registration was abolished in England when the new dental contract started in 2007.


Oh! I am in England, I called three dentists today an they all told me I will have to register and that my own dentist will make me de-register!

I keep telling myself that it will soon be all over but it now I have convinced myself that as I have no problems with the tooth there is a possibility I may have decay under all my old fillings and that the problems are just beginning - yes a little on the irrational side I know :scared:
 
Well my dentist hasnt called me back yet and they close in an hour, I have got myself so worked up that I cant leave the house I know that I need to calm down but I cant.

It doesnt help that she told me that curved roots were hard to treat, my worse fear is that she starts the job an tells me she cant finish it an then puts me on a waiting list.

and now I feel like each of my posts is getting more ridiculous - im sorry I think sitting here all day worrying about nothing but teeth has driven me mad.
 
If you want clarification of the registration issue then phone your local primary care trust. I don't know how dental activity is validated, but it may be that the surgery is worried that if you are registered at two nhs dental surgeries then the responsible Primary care trust (pct) will refuse to pay them. If anyone can clarify why they are telling you this, it will be the pct. Any pct should be able to give you the information. Or contact the general dental council as they must know.

If your dentist is not a specialist endodontist then she may be panicking a bit about something a specialists would not bat an eyelid about. You really should be referred to a specialist to have treatment like this.
 
Right thank you so much for advice, I called the General Dental Council and they put me in contact with the PCT for my area who have said that there is no reason why I can not get a second opinion but it is down to the dentist as to whether or not he/she will treat me on the NHS or privately. I have an appointment on Friday morning with an NHS dentist an he has said it is not a problem to see me on the NHS.

My dentist has also called me and we had a long discussion about the whole situation, basically she said that decay can happen under any crown and that there is no way of knowing if it will happen, she also said that it may not have shown on a previous xray I had in Nov 2007 as the crown could have hidden it.

I thought I had an infection in my roots but she has said that there is no infection but that the root looks different on the xray, she said it may be dying off. She said that the reason I do not have pain is because there is no infection and only a small amount of tooth decay and that is why she didnt prescribe antibiotics as there is nothing to treat. I asked if she would be prepared to remove the decay and fill the tooth and wait an see what happens with the root as she has also said she can not be sure when or if the tooth will start to cause pain. She assured me that the decay that is there wont do any major damage while I am waiting (another concern of mine) and that whilst it is covered with the temporary filling it is all protected.

We have left it that she will do whatever I want which has made me feel so much better as I dont feel under pressure to have the root canal done. I know I may be asking for trouble later but I have read that lots of root canal work is carried out for no reason and that sometimes possible problems that show on xrays can settle down.

At least I might sleep tonight now :rolleyes:
 
Well I have been for a second opinion today I found a local dentist who qualified in 1965 so I guessed he would have plenty of experience.

He examined and xrayed the tooth and said that the tooh an the roots look healthy he can see no reason why I would need any root canal treatment or an extraction he said he cant see any decay at all on the xray either so any decay that is hidden under the temporary filling I have must be tiny.

I am releived to say the least but now I have to decide whether to still go back to my dentist next Tuesday for the filling that my present dentist said she would do but she is reluctant to do so (makes me wonder if she will drill too far on purpose - which is a bad thought) or to just change dentists which will be a bit of a disappointment for the children as they are at ease with our present dentist. :(
 
I'm glad the second opinion confirmed you don't need such drastic treatment and hope you can find someone else to complete the work.
 
Maybe I missed it, but do you have to all go to the same dentist in the UK?

I am in the US, and I have one dentist, while my wife and kids have another dentist. For awhile, the kids were at a different dentist...so our family had three dentists.

If they like the one and you like the other, split the family...in a good way. ;D
 
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