A pain question - hoping you won't say root canal

[inky]

Could someone help me understand this please?

I thought I found a dentist I could trust - but on my last visit he was so awful that even my G.P. heartily suggests I find a new dentist.

For a year and a half, I told him and his staff that I had a small little swollen spot I could feel with my tongue right above a front tooth. When I first mentioned it, I swore he told his assistant that he thought the filling in that front tooth was loose and needed to be replaced. However, when I came back, he totally ignored that tooth. So, I reminded him. They did a full set of x-rays and full mouth exam and told me I had a certain number of teeth needing filling. However, they didn't show me which teeth. I just assumed that must be one of them.

He did all the teeth fillings in one go (which was a bad thing in the end - they were on both sides of my mouth) - but did NOT touch that one. So I asked him again outright why not - and he said there's nothing wrong with it.

So I went home. This was maybe 4 or 5 months ago I think.

Well, I still have that same little swollen spot that I can feel with my tongue (on the back side). That front tooth has an old big white filling. Now when I waterpik and use my waterpik ultrasonic toothbrush that area hurts strongly when I get my baking soda in that region and start brushing - so that I hate brushing now when I used to love this brush (but I force myself to go through it)- and afterwards it feels quite sore there for a long time - dull aching. Now it is starting to feel like that after a sweet drink too sometimes.

Even their hygeniest said she couldn't see anything wrong with that tooth about 5 months ago.

What is wrong that would cause pain that he couldn't see on an x-ray and exam? Could it be a loose filling if it doesn't feel loose to my touch? Could there be just enough of a gap between tooth and filling that something is getting in to cause irritation and now pain?

I can not have anything done about this for another month - because I have to see a cardiologist to figure out a low blood pressure, tachycardia, flutter issue first - and I want the cardiologists opinion on what dental numbing medicine the next dentist should use on me so I don't have such a rotten allergic type of reaction. (My former dentist used one certain type - but this "new" guy said that was a ridiculous suggestion that a certain type of anesthetic might be troublesome for me. He was wrong, said my G.P. It was likely epinepherine in the shot that made me react horribly. While he worked on me my abnormally low blood pressure rockete, I shook like a leaf, freezing cold, and part of my face swelled just a tad - and afterwards I had a migraine for 10 days and wicked teeth pains. Never again!. The reaction wasn't fear - it was allergy.)

So please - is this something that might need a root canal? I'm pretty well terrified of that. I think I could work my way up to the idea of a filling or maybe even a crown - but I can't handle the notion of root canal with my other health issues and the aftermath of that wretched experience in that chair.

Thank you.

 

[inky]

Any help, please?

 

[gracenyc29]

Personally looks like u need to find a new dentist. Hes obviously not hearing your concerns.
I dont know if its rootcanal needed but in my experience with my teeth sometimes we think its one thing and happens to be another.
Goodluck sorry i didnt have better answer

 

[kemmie777]

I agree with the above post as well. Your dentist should listen to you about the type of novicaine to use. You could have a reaction that's even more severe if there is an allergy there. There are many conditions that require an alternate type of numbing solution especially if there are heart conditions and medications involved. I even think pregnancy is cause to not use the epinephrine containing novicaine. Also your dentist should specifically check out that tooth that you have a complaint about and go over why it could be hurting you and start to narrow down the causes even it means sending out to another dentist to rule out potential causes. That what my dentist did for my last two teeth that were hurting without a clear indication of why it was hurting. I appreciated the efforts he made and the fact that he could admit he didn't know but was committed to helping me find out the cause.

As for your tooth sensitivity, there can be a host of reasons ranging from gum issues to cavity to infection etc.

Personally I know a root canal sounds scary but they really aren't in actuality. There isn't too much drilling; probably less then when you get a cavity filled. It's mostly felling a little pressure and the doctor cleaning out the canals and a couple of weird smells for a few minutes. And holding your mouth open for a long time. Some practices offer sedation to help ease the experience. One suggestion I would make is to have an endodontist preform it especially if your current general dentist is not listening to you. Don't get me wrong, a general dentist can perform the root canal as well but generally it is done over several sessions whereas an endodontist can do it in one session or two if there is more than one root or many canals to clean. Many also use a microscope to make sure every nook and cranny is taken care of. Both makes them more efficient which make the processes a quicker one for you. My endodontist was also my cheerleader to during the procedure giving encouragement throughout and telling me how well I was doing.

I hope you find out the reason your tooth is being bothersome to you. And whatever needs to be done I think you will be fine and hopefully find a dentist who will listen to you and make sure you are comfortable and administer any type of numbing in a responsible manner if your current one won't shape up.

 

[inky]

Thank you both - kemmie777 and Gracenyc29 - for taking the time to help me get a grip on this.

Since I wrote, I searched for a dentist I once saw when I was in high school (hint - this wasn't recent!). I remember him being very positive and gentle and reassuring. He does root canals and all sorts of things in addition to general dentistry and seems to feel confident in them. The only thing that slows me down is that the dentist I'm leaving filled my head with the notion that his laser dental stuff was far superior to making sure no infection could set in if ever a root canal would be needed. The dentist I want to try now doesn't use the laser stuff - he uses all the traditional tools. (He's been doing this for probably 30 or 40 years) Is this a reason to worry? His receptionist said they have other patients allergic to epinepherine (sp?) and there's no problem using the alternative stuff. The guy I'm leaving was hard to book an appointment with without waiting a month or two - the new guy can fit me in within the same week of calling. (Do I worry the new guy isn't busy enough? Does that show any lack of anything?) One of my relatives used to go to this man and liked him.

Thank you for all the reassurance. The endodontist sounds good too - I'm going to think about that.

Sorry for all the questions. I just don't want to make the wrong decision on this. The dentist I'm leaving was contracted with an insurance company which allowed me to use a discount card for a huge savings. The new guy accepts insurance but isn't contracted for a discount - so I would have to pay full price. I would pay full price gladly if it would give me satisfaction and a good ending.

The tooth is simmering down again - which is making me think maybe it could be a gum issue. Maybe that's why they couldn't see anything on films etc? I think I'd rather it was a gum thing!

Sorry I'm all over the place in my thinking. I'm just trying to figure this out. Thank you again.

 

[inky]

PS: I should have mentioned - I do also get migraines and it is a possibility my trigeminal nerve could cause problems in my teeth that complicate this. I've had migraines in my teeth - it's rather dreadful. I'm sort of complicated.