Endodontist Caused Gum Abscess

[wilson68944]

Hey Guys. I'm a new poster and I'm very stressed out by the dental trouble I've been having lately. I'm a 28 year old male who is healthy. I had my first Root Canal on a my last molar (second) on the top right side due to an old cavity that was filled years ago and eventually died. I had the Root Canal performed by a General Dentist in October 2013. A few weeks later I began having symptoms that were suspicious like foul taste coming from the RC'd tooth again, a loose feeling with the tooth, and the nail in the coffin: my first sinus infection on the same side directly above that tooth and I could feel the pressure almost like a tunnel from my RC'd second top molar straight to my Maxillary sinus. Over the past several months I went back to the same General Dentist who performed the RC three times to have him look at it and he kept telling me it was fine.

So after the sinus infection I went to an Otorhinolaryngologist and Endodontist. The ENT doctor put me on antibiotics and gave me a CT scan which showed infection above the RC'd back molar. The Endodontist was recommended by another General Dentist who scolded me for letting a general do my RC. He said only a specialist should do them. Anyway, I went to see her this past Tuesday and she did a thorough kind of rough probing between my RC'd tooth and gum. She said everything look good and it looked like a decent RC. She said the antibiotics might be masking any signs of failure but it looked good.

When I got home and over the next few days whenever I would brush my teeth or eat my old abscess would fill up and I would have to push on it and swipe it towards my gumline to empty it. It's not an abscess caused by an infected tooth, rather while she was probing she must have punctured an opening leading to the old empty abscess pocket and now whenever I eat or drink the debris gets between my tooth and gum and gets stuck in the opening. I was having this same problem before I had the original RC because the dentist had to trace the abscess to the tooth inside the gum by sticking a stick through the actual abscess. He pushed too far and it popped out alongside my gumline. Therefore, he created an opening that I got food and toothpaste in and it would swell and decrease after eating or brushing. After the RCT it closed up and I forgot all about it.

I'm so upset and defeated. I try to be proactive and come out of the dentist in worse shape than when I went in. I called today but the Endodontists are out for the weekend. Has this ever happened to anyone? How can this be remedied? I really appreciate any help. Genuinely!

 

[Dr. Daniel]

Hi,

Just from reading your story (without inspecting you) I believe your tooth has combined endodontic-periodontics problem. This should be diagnosed by your GP and the endodontist.
It happens quite often that diagnosing becomes much more difficult because of antibiotics. I believe you should continue with the endodontist. Although you want to fix the problem ASAP, I suggest you wait for Monday and talk with her directly the phone.
I don't believe you will suffer from any pain this weekend (due to the antibiotics).

 

[wilson68944]

Thanks doctor! I greatly appreciate you taking the time out of your busy day to help a stranger. How could the perio problem be resolved? Will it heal on its own if kept clean? What could have caused this? I should mention that despite my feeling of looseness in the tooth the endodontist told me it's solid. The ENT doctor also said my sinus cavity doesn't appear to be breached. Also, I have my gum pockets measured every cleaning and they are all within normal range depth. I've never experienced or have been told that I have any periodontal/disease problems. After I left both the ENT doctor and the Endo earlier in the week they said just finish the antibiotics and everything is fine. Of course, then this popped up. I realize without checking me yourself you can only speculate.

I wanted to be clear that after my original root canal in October 2013, I haven't had any abscess or bubble anywhere on my gums. It was only after my examination on Tuesday did one begin to form in the area of the original abscess in October.

Again, sincerely, thank you!

 

[Dr. Daniel]

Again, sincerely, thank you!

my pleasure.
I assuming we are dealing here with a bacterial problem and the question is where is the source of the bacteria.
Answering that can be sometimes challenging but I think you are in good hands for answering that.

 

[wilson68944]

my pleasure.
I assuming we are dealing here with a bacterial problem and the question is where is the source of the bacteria.
Answering that can be sometimes challenging but I think you are in good hands for answering that.

Dr. Dan, I wanted to thank you again for taking the time from your schedule to answer a stranger's concern from across the globe in the States. You've made me feel a bit better while I'm waiting to see my dentist. I just hope I don't have to go to a Periodontist now to get a deep cleaning on that tooth in hopes it will heal. I wish I could return the favor some how.