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At my wits end

A

Aj64

Member
Joined
May 4, 2018
Messages
59
This might end up a long post. Sorry to make you read so much.

It started October 2017. I began getting pain in my left temple area when I touched it. Saw a neurologist and several doctors. Had an MRI scan but nothing was found. But the pain kept increasing. Then in March 2018 my gp suggested seeing a dentist. I wasn't getting any tooth pain at all but I was desperate for answers. I hadn't seen a dentist in over a decade (I know, very daft of me). It took a while to find an nhs dentist who was accepting new patients.

So I saw a dentist. He took xrays and said it was possible I needed a filling replacing on my upper left, first molar, but that the head pain probably wasn't tooth related. So he rem9ved the old filling and found a lot of decay beneath it which he said had probably been festering for a long time.

After removing the decay he was now extremely close to the nerves of the tooth but put a new filling in and we hoped for the best. The pain skyrocketed, both the pain in my temple and now the tooth itself. So he said I needed a root canal.

So he gave me the root canal. After completing it he told me that he had never done an unsupervised molar root canal before!!! The pain didn't go away. I went back to his office every week for a month telling him how much it was hurting. Even my tongue brushing the tooth caused extreme pain. He said he didn't know what else to suggest and maybe I should find a new dentist. I was so scared and annoyed.

I found a new dentist (private this time as no local nhs dentists were taking new patients). This dentist was annoyed that the nhs guy attempted the root canal. He told me I had 2 options. Extraction or see a specialist endodontist to see if the tooth could still be saved. He also told me that due to the position of the roots of my molar, extraction would likely cause a sinus perforation. My fear skyrocketed and stupidly I googled sinus perforations and read some real horror stories.

So I found an endodontist. It was now July 2018 and I had suffered months of sleepless nights and absolute agony in tooth, temple, left eye and cheek. The endo did a retreatment (costing £900...most if my savings). And we waited. Still the pain wouldn't go.

So in November 2018 the endo tried another retreatment for free (very kind of him). He discovered I had extra canals (instead of the usual 3 or 4 I had 6!).

The pain was still there. It had eased a bit but still impossible to chew on my left side or even brush that molar properly. But the endo said wait and see if it settles.

In the meantime I found a surgeon (had to go private again as nhs waiting lists were obscene in the area). He said he could extract and if necessary do a sinus repair using my cheek fat...But it would cost £2000 and require general anaesthesia. I simply could not afford that after the root canal cost and the thought of general anaesthetic scares me. But I booked anyway thinking I could get a loan.

A week before the scheduled extraction they called saying the surgery had been cancelled due to staff shortages. They wouldn't be able to rebook until January 2019

To cut a long story at least a little short, I still have the tooth now. Some things happened in my life earlier this year and money has become a big issue so there is no way I can afford that much money. I have after much searching found a local(ish) oral surgeon who will see me on 1st April. He isn't too expensive and seems experienced.

Now I am absolutely terrified. The prospect of sinus perforation and having to deal with so much healing really terrifies me. I've lost so much weight through not being able to eat properly through all of this (I only weighed 70kg to begin with and am now at 55kg). Between the weight loss and loss of sleep I look like a zombie and feel like I'm actually losing my mind. I just sit and cry for hours sometimes and this entire situation has left me feeling helpless. It seems so weird that 1 tooth has affected my life so much and no one has seemed able to help me properly.
 
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Gosh, poor you. This might be a daft question, but are you still registered with the NHS dentist? I was referred to an endodontist for root canal on an upper molar, which had huge, twisted roots close to my sinus cavity - my own dentist was happy to do it, but said if it was her tooth she would prefer a specialist. He said that if the tooth needed extracted, he would send me back to my (NHS) dentist, who would then refer me to the dental hospital. I paid privately for the root canal, but had I needed the extraction it would have been free of charge. I am in Scotland so I know things are a bit different here, but might that be worth looking into?
 
Hi Aj64,

so sorry to read what you have been through and even more that you are still suffering after so many visits :( Will you see the surgeon for the first time on 1st April for a consultation or is the procedure scheduled already?
 
Enerete
The appointment on 1st April will be an initial consultation. I did speak to the surgeon on the phone though and he said he thinks my extraction should be within his skill level (he's been a dentist for 30 years and an oral surgery specialist for 9 years).

Judythecat
I'm no longer with the nhs dentist. What happened really scared me so I am now registered with the private dentist who seems much more caring and isn't much more expensive than the nhs anyway. I am very jealous of Scotish people...your government actually seem competent and caring. The nhs down here is a bit of a mess, particularly dentistry.
 
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So sorry to hear about your struggles. I had an upper left molar that had a similar situation. I had a root canal (with an endodontist) that never settled. She performed an apicoectomy, which did perforate my sinus. It wasn't as bad as it sounds on google. I had a sinus infection for about two weeks and wasn't allowed to blow my nose during that time. Ultimately I had to have the tooth extracted. It again went into my sinus. The oral surgeon used a synthetic membrane to cover it, and I had bone grafting done. It again caused a sinus infection but healed nicely.
 
I've been reading your journey mountainmama. I feel bad for being so scared after all youve been through! You're so strong to have dealt with everything. It sounds like we had a pretty similar problem with our upper molar. My new dentist thinks there may be a crack but said the only way to know would be to extract and see. I'm praying to every god imaginable that this surgeon I'm seeing in a few weeks can extract the tooth without tearing my sinus open. The idea of a hole between my mouth and inside my face really freaks me out.
 
I've been reading your journey mountainmama. I feel bad for being so scared after all youve been through! You're so strong to have dealt with everything. It sounds like we had a pretty similar problem with our upper molar. My new dentist thinks there may be a crack but said the only way to know would be to extract and see. I'm praying to every god imaginable that this surgeon I'm seeing in a few weeks can extract the tooth without tearing my sinus open. The idea of a hole between my mouth and inside my face really freaks me out.

I hope my journey can help in some way. I was absolutely terrified of extractions and dental procedures when all this started, but now my fear of procedures has definitely lessened. The surgeon should be able to fix a sinus communication pretty easily. I had it twice, and saw an ENT. The ENT said that it really isn't that big of a deal and it heals on its own.

You will be fine! Deep breaths, and trust your surgeon. They do this all the time.
 
Enerete
The appointment on 1st April will be an initial consultation. I did speak to the surgeon on the phone though and he said he thinks my extraction should be within his skill level (he's been a dentist for 30 years and an oral surgery specialist for 9 years).

I know this is easier said than done but if the procedure scares you so much, it might be good to separate it into bite sized pieces and only think as much forward as necessary. Your next appointment is a consultation so for now thinking about your questions and the things that scare you would be the best idea. You can still worry about the actual treatment later. Hopefully your surgeon is a nice one and will do his best to put you at ease and explain to you why all the awful things you are imagining won't happen.

Really hope you can get some sleep soon and find a way to distract yourself to get through the next two weeks. Thinking back on my journey, writing a journal was what helped me any time I felt overwhelmed by fear.

All the best wishes and keep us posted
 
I will keep this updated as things progress. It's great to have somewhere to talk with people who understand how frightening this all is
 
I had my appointment. Very good Dentist, he made me feel at ease very quickly. He did a thorough examination and took xrays. His verdict...he wants to wait a while before extracting as there are signs that the bone around the root is healing well.

My pain has been lower than usual over the last 2 weeks. It's still there, but it's more of a background noise now than a distracting pain. I cant eat on my left side still as that causes me too much pain.

I'm not sure what to think now. I had psyched myself up for an extraction. I have mixed feelings. I would, of course like to keep the tooth. But I am scared of the pain coming back at high levels again. Im also concerned that I cannot chew on the left side of my mouth at all.
 
I had my appointment. Very good Dentist, he made me feel at ease very quickly. He did a thorough examination and took xrays. His verdict...he wants to wait a while before extracting as there are signs that the bone around the root is healing well.

My pain has been lower than usual over the last 2 weeks. It's still there, but it's more of a background noise now than a distracting pain. I cant eat on my left side still as that causes me too much pain.

I'm not sure what to think now. I had psyched myself up for an extraction. I have mixed feelings. I would, of course like to keep the tooth. But I am scared of the pain coming back at high levels again. Im also concerned that I cannot chew on the left side of my mouth at all.

It may not ever settle, but it also may never get the excruciating pain again, since you had the nerve removed. Mine never settled, but I had it for 5 months after the root canal and apico, and it never had terrible pain, just a dull annoyance. I also couldn't chew on that side during all that time.

It becomes an issue of quality of life. Mine had no issues in x rays, no extra canals (endo did a retreat), no sign of infection, and looked like it was healing on x rays. I could not live with the constant low grade pain and avoiding that tooth when chewing.

I understand the finances completely! I don't even want to calculate how much money we have spent on my teeth since last May. We just pay for one thing at a time, and use the credit card when we can't make payments. Your tooth may heal up nicely now that it isn't being worked on constantly. I really hope that is the case for you!
 
I see the oral surgeon dentist again at the end of May. I'm just praying now that the pain doesnt come back like before. I do not even begin to dare hoping my tooth could actually settle now...its been 5 months since the re retreatment
 
I see the oral surgeon dentist again at the end of May. I'm just praying now that the pain doesnt come back like before. I do not even begin to dare hoping my tooth could actually settle now...its been 5 months since the re retreatment

I hope the oral surgeon can give you a good treatment plan, and that the pain doesn't get worse.
 
In general significant sinus perforations that require buccal flap advancements seems to be rare. I have taken out many teeth and I have seen just a few significant exposures and I think I immediately grafted and closed the site locally(not buccal fat graft) and all of them closed without issue. Now I will say I use a very gentle extraction technique which helps avoid the issue.
 
My extraction is due in just over 2 weeks (18th June).

The oral surgeon has taken a few more xrays and says he cant understand why it hurts. He says the root canal looks perfect, and theres no xray evidence of continued infection. But even just touching the tooth with a finger hurts like heck! And there is a general dull ache around that area of my mouth.

I am so scared. My tooth goes from barely hurting to awful pain on a day to day basis. When its good I think about delaying the surgery and giving the tooth a bit more time. But then the pain comes rocketing back. I cant spot any pattern to what causes the pain or relieves it.

The surgeon says he will cut the tooth into 3 pieces and remove each root separately to minimise the risk of sinus communication. But the idea of a connection between my mouth and sinus terrifies me. And I've been in pain since October 2017 now and cant deal with it all much longer.
 
My extraction is due in just over 2 weeks (18th June).

The oral surgeon has taken a few more xrays and says he cant understand why it hurts. He says the root canal looks perfect, and theres no xray evidence of continued infection. But even just touching the tooth with a finger hurts like heck! And there is a general dull ache around that area of my mouth.

I am so scared. My tooth goes from barely hurting to awful pain on a day to day basis. When its good I think about delaying the surgery and giving the tooth a bit more time. But then the pain comes rocketing back. I cant spot any pattern to what causes the pain or relieves it.

The surgeon says he will cut the tooth into 3 pieces and remove each root separately to minimise the risk of sinus communication. But the idea of a connection between my mouth and sinus terrifies me. And I've been in pain since October 2017 now and cant deal with it all much longer.

I had the exact same issue, where the endodontist had no idea why I still had pain, as the x ray showed a perfectroot canal. I also had an apicoectomy and that still didn't fix the problem.
I don't know if it will be the case for you, but the oral surgeon said that my tooth came out really easily, as it was "angry", as he put it. The pain apparently meant the tissue around the tooth was aggravated and the tooth came out really easily because of it.
I know it is scary, but as I said before, the oral surgeon will stitch the incision shut, which means that you technically will not have the sinus open to your mouth. I honestly couldn't even tell, other than having a sinus infection afterwards. Buy some sudafed (the real stuff, not the pseudo kind), as you won't be able to blow your nose for a few weeks, and it will help with any congestion.

Good luck! You will be amazed at how good you will feel after the extraction. Even the recovery was simple because the pain was less than I had with the tooth!
 
I have read, and reread your journey mountainMama as it sounds very much like my experience.

I hope beyond all hope that the extraction is easy. Another fear I have is that the pain wont go away after the tooth has gone.

Was it a case that the pain vanished as soon as the tooth was out?

Trying not to sneeze for a few weeks will be really tough. How long did you wait before blowing your nose and has your sinus been okay since?
 
I have read, and reread your journey mountainMama as it sounds very much like my experience.

I hope beyond all hope that the extraction is easy. Another fear I have is that the pain wont go away after the tooth has gone.

Was it a case that the pain vanished as soon as the tooth was out?

Trying not to sneeze for a few weeks will be really tough. How long did you wait before blowing your nose and has your sinus been okay since?

The pain was gone immediately after the extraction. The area was sore, of course, and I had the usual extraction pain as well, but the bruised feeling and the achy feeling was gone.

It was tough not to blow my nose, especially when I got a sinus infection. Sudafed helped a LOT. The endodontist told me to get the sudafed, and to take it around the clock the first few days so that I wouldn't feel like I needed to blow my nose. It was actually easier than I thought, because I was so worried about my sinus that I was super aware of it. Once the sinus infection was gone, my sinuses were completely back to normal, amd actually better. All my x rays prior to the extraction showed a cloudiness in my sinus cavity, and that was gone about a month after the extraction, when I followed up with my ENT.
 
Having just read this, from the beginning, now, I must say that this is one I the all time DFC experiences.

You have proven yourself a good sport. I hope you continue to have courage.

Keep us posted.
 
So, I am a week away from the big day. I've begun to get really frightened as the reality of the situation begins to become more vivid. I have thought about calling and delaying the surgery several times, and even rang the dentist with this in mind on Friday but couldnt get through.

But I need to get this done. I have given this damned tooth so much of a chance to settle and it wont. Some days the pain is minimal *around a 2/10) but then it will spike again (as high as a 5 or 6). Touching the tooth with my tongue hurts like mad and I haven't properly brushed that area for months now...I worry about the bad tooth's neighbours.

I cant help worrying that the extraction will go wrong. That my sinus will get a huge hole in it and need further surgery. That it will take ages to heal and get infected. The procedure itself scares me enough, but it's the recovery is the bit I'm scared of the most.
 
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