• Dental Phobia Support

    Welcome! This is an online support group for anyone who is has a severe fear of the dentist or dental treatment. Please note that this is NOT a general dental problems or health anxiety forum! You can find a list of them here.

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Do I really need root canal work?

No we dont need to go to the same dentist, but I like the fact that we all go for a check up together (I always have to get in the chair first to show the children there is nothing to be scared of - even though I am the terrified one) !!

I have kind of lost confidence in my present dentist now, although a friend said to me earlier how do I know that the dentist today wasnt wrong :rolleyes:

I have the weekend to decide whether to change my dentist or not :confused:
 
I have kind of lost confidence in my present dentist now, although a friend said to me earlier how do I know that the dentist today wasnt wrong :rolleyes:

ha ha! yes this is true.....get a third opinion then. How much did a second opinion cost? It will put your mind at rest either way which is priceless.

If it helps, at the end of the day you lose nothing by watchful waiting. You see if your symptoms change and if they do you do something about it. At the moment you have said you have no symptoms, therefore you have to go with a professional opinion that convinces you that a problem DOES exist. Did you look at the x rays at both practices? Did your first dentist show you the area where the infection is? Why not ask your second opinion dentist to put the opinion in writing and then present it to your current dentist with a suggestion that they talk to each other? A written opinion should not cost more than a tenner.

Hope it works out. A second opinion saved me over a thousand quid and I have a perfectly healthy symptomless saved back molar :)
 
forgot to ask...why just a couple of days???

Well I could leave it longer but I have an appointment booked for Tuesday so I kind of thought I should decide what to do by Monday in case I want to cancel the appointment.

The second opinion was just standard NHS charge but he did say he didnt think i should tell my dentist I have seen another one as he thought it might make it more difficult for me if I want to stay with her, he suggested i ask for another opinion from another dentist at my usual practice although I doubt they will go against each other.

I looked at both xrays and couldn't really see what she was pointing out to me on the first one, the xray I saw today looked like normal teeth an roots, no dark bits etc, I suppose there is always a chance that the root was slightly inflamed first time due to the crown not long falling off and that may have calmed down now??

I could ask my dentist for another xray I suppose but then she may still say I need root canal treatment !!
 
If I were you I would say you want to postpone the root treatment and ask your dentist for another x ray and consultation. I would then ask why she was convinced you needed it, given the complexity of carrying it out and the lack of concrete evidence. I was also told I needed a root treatment based on a vague shadow on an xray. On a different x ray it did not show up. Here I am about five months later with no root treatment and absolutely no symptoms having had a filling elsewhere. The second dentist could see no evidence on x ray and suggested having more conservative treatment and seeing what happens. What can you lose in following a similar approach? It cost me just over a hundred quid compared to over a thousand. I thought if I take this approach I can see what happens rather than jump in and I can always have a root treatment later without really spending a huge amount finding out. I think if you have a second opinion that contradicts the first then you would want some very convincing answers before doing anything drastic.
 
by the way I've absolutely no problem with saying Ive had a second opinion. It makes the original dentist more likely to double check their diagnosis. This is a big thing she is suggesting so there is no shame or bad feeling in a patient checking whether it's necessary.
 
by the way I've absolutely no problem with saying Ive had a second opinion. It makes the original dentist more likely to double check their diagnosis. This is a big thing she is suggesting so there is no shame or bad feeling in a patient checking whether it's necessary.


Thanks for the advice, I will go Tuesday and ask for another xray. If she still insists I should have root canal I will tell her about the second opinion. In the meantime
I will pray that the dentist I saw today with the 45 years experience doesnt have failing eye sight and could see the xray properly :giggle:

I keep asking myself if I can go through childbirth and have a c section while being awake, why is the dentist such a challenge :rolleyes:
 
:giggle:

I keep asking myself if I can go through childbirth and have a c section while being awake, why is the dentist such a challenge :rolleyes:

That is a very good question! Personally I think that if someone could cause you long term pain and uncetainty by sticking sharp implements in your uterus and making changes to how you are made up down there on a regular basis (with uncertainty as to whether it's necessary) and then finding stuff you need missing, then we would all have a phobia about that too! Luckily whatever babies do to us is not visible every time we talk.
 
the mouth is not only something that is very personal to us, it is also something constantly on display to the world and is needed to survive so no surprise that it causes so much angst when a complete stranger takes control of it....
 
HELP ADVICE NEEDED !!!

Ok, I have just made an appointment for next Monday to have my tooth prepared for a new crown at the new dentist but now I am worrying that he is wrong and I do need root treatment (still have no problems at all) I know its stupid but what if his xray machine is really old and he cant see the root problem :rolleyes:

When I look at the facts - my dentist who is on maternity leave fitted the crown, she never told me that I could get decay under it she said it should last about 10 years, did she do a good job is the question as it was filed down so much you could see the silver AND part of the cement !! And it got decay under it, thank goodness it did fall off as I had no pain at all so the first I would have known is when it had caused real problems.

Her sister wants to do root canal and after a long discussion i convinced her to just remove the decay and refill, she was happy to leave the decay and the tooth an see how it goes for a while :( she said she wouldnt put any more than a temp filling and I am not sure if she is prepared to re-crown as she believes the root needs treating, she also isnt confident that she can do the roots and may refer me after starting it anyway !!

Lastly we all went for a family check up in November and were all fine, except at Xmas my son had a problem and when we went in as an emergency an saw a different dentist she removed loads of tartar from the back of his teeth and had a right go at him, reduced him to tears (I dont mind that as since he has finally started brushing his teeth properly and with a 2 minute timer) but why didnt the dentist spot this on our check up?? :confused:

I am sure I am answering my own question here - Shall I go ahead with new dentist, keep looking for another or stay with my own and ask her to re-xray etc also what about hygiene how can we be sure what they are like, my dentist had her gloves on last week and then picked up the foot pedal an moved it before sticking her gloved hands in my mouth :sick:

I am scared of change (although I know it could be for the better) and worried I will leave existing dentist an regret it.
 
I went to my dentist today to ask for my crown back and was surprised to see a hole right through the bottom of it after they had removed the cement, anyway they asked me to see the practice manager before leaving. She said that my dentist who is on maternity leave has offered to make me a new crown free of charge or to give me a refund.

She showed me a tiny area on the xray that she said could be suspicious or it could just be the angle the xray was taken so she said in a years time it could either flare up or not even be there anymore so she suggested I have a new crown made and have it fitted with temporary cement in case it needs to be popped off to do root canal work at a later date.

My dentist isnt due back til March but she said provided I keep the tooth clean it will be fine to leave as it is !!

I am so confused and scared that leaving it will end up infecting the tooth, what does this sound like, are they admitting that they messed up or are they just being nice!!

What shall I do?
 
are they admitting that they messed up or are they just being nice!!

What shall I do?

sounds like a bit of both. Some dentists do shoddy work and don't offer you any redress. Does not sound good if you have to wait until march. If it were me I would go back to the dentist who did the second opinion and ask for more advice based on this offer.
 
Does not sound good if you have to wait until march. If it were me I would go back to the dentist who did the second opinion and ask for more advice based on this offer.

I discussed with him that I was worried about the decay and the tooth being uncovered and he said more or less the same thing that it wouldnt do any harm.

He said that if he were me he would be pressing for a new crown from my own dentist but I didnt even need to ask. I get on very well with the dentist on maternity leave and she is extremely good at keeping me calm so ideally I would like her to do the work.

I feel like my head is going to explode with the confusion, at the moment I have no pain which is a good thing and I can eat and drink without any discomfort so I am trying to think positive in that the roots are fine, the decay is covered and the crown will be replaced for free.

Hmmmm watch this space ....... !! :hidesbehindsofa:

I blame the dentist my parents took me too, my back teeth are more filling than tooth and a total mess, I dont recall having tooth ache as a child just tons of huge fillings (back in the 70s) and my best friend who I grew up has the same amount of fillings as me and we shared the same dentist, her dentist has told her that he cant believe a child would have needed so many fillings like that - makes you wonder doesnt it.
 
well if you feel comfortable with the dentist who did the work then perhaps you should insist they do the crown at a more reputable lab. Whilst your tooth is hopefully/probably ok if you have it uncovered and can clean it when you want, it clearly wasnt when you had a crown with a hole that trapped debris inside that you could not remove for months/years....you need really good impressions to get a really good fit and a quality crown.
 
My dentist has finally returned from maternity leave and I saw her today (I was surprisingly calm)!!!

We had a long chat and she took a look at the tooth and took a further xray which revealed that there is absolutely nothing at all wrong with my root :jump:

She has packed the tooth out a bit as the tooth below it has come up to high to fit the new crown and she doesnt want to take anymore off the top tooth, I go back in just over two weeks to have the tooth filed back down, the decay removed and the impressions done, she seems to think that the decay entered through the hole so hopefully next time it will be ok. She is also going to fit a gold crown this time as she thinks it will be harder wearing and a better fit.

Thank god I didnt go ahead with the root canal work back in January I was obviously right to query it.
 
Well I had the tooth prepared for a new crown last Fridat and the filling was done, it hurt when she was drilling so she had to stop and numb the gum further and then it was all ok but the temporary crown fell off on Saturday morning and the tooth was so sensitive it was agony for a while, it did calm down but I noticed an area that was particularly sore even to touch with floss.

I went back to the dentist today and my bite had changed already so she was having problems fitting another temporary crown and opted to build the tooth up with filling material instead. I mentioned how sensitive it is and she didnt seem concerned but is it normal to be so sensitive? I know its been filled and filed but I dont recall it being this bad the last time I had the tooth prepared for a crown.

It doesnt hurt other than when I eat cold or sweet things or if something touches the part of the tooth that had the filling any advice would be appreciated please.

Thanks
 
I just read your thread. What an ordeal. I’m going through kind of the same thing. First of all, why is a dentist trying to do a root canal…she should have referred you to a specialist who does that. I’m no expert at all but I’d say go get a root canal. Your roots might look ok but they could be slowly dying. I had two crowns March 2008 and they continues to hurt and after almost 19 visits to my dentist, she finally referred me to get the root canals. (I go in today to have one crown re-set because she set it wrong.)

The root canals were the best choice I ever made. Nothing can hurt anymore if you don’t have roots/nerves. My roots were curvy too…my endodondist said it made it a little tricky but I still didn’t feel anything. Your tooth might only be sensitive to cold and sweets now but it could only get worse if those roots are slowly dying.

If you want some encouragement on root canals, do a search for my posts (only about 5 posts so far) and read my first post here….it’s long….but kind of touches on how happy I was to get those root canals.
 
It sounds like the temp isn't sealing the tooth properly, could you go back to the dentist and get her to seal it a bit better?

It sounds like the nerve in the tooth is pretty healthy if it's reacting so strongly to stimuli, if it's any consolation (and I'm sure it isn't!) nerves in teeth only have pain transmitters, so if anything triggers them off, touch, hot, sweet etc, then they can only send pain messages to your brain.

Really bad design IMO :)
 
It sounds like the temp isn't sealing the tooth properly, could you go back to the dentist and get her to seal it a bit better?

It sounds like the nerve in the tooth is pretty healthy if it's reacting so strongly to stimuli, if it's any consolation (and I'm sure it isn't!) nerves in teeth only have pain transmitters, so if anything triggers them off, touch, hot, sweet etc, then they can only send pain messages to your brain.

Really bad design IMO :)

Thank you - the tooth has settled down now it is just really cold drinks that hurt it now and only for a few seconds :)

Hopefully when the new crown is fitted next week it will all be over (fingers crossed) !! Oh and your right it is a bad design lol
 
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