Had pain from Filling now told I may need a Crown

[justine kros]

Hello,

I recently went to a new dentist (after moving to a new area) and was told that I had some decay under my old metallic filling and my dentist advised replacing the filling with a white composite filling which I agreed to.
Afterwards when I began eating normally (I gave it a day or so before chewing on that side) I noticed a sharp pain when chewing on anything crispy like cereal. I gave it a few weeks to settle down but the pain did not go away. It was only happening when I chewed on something hard. I went back to my dentist who asked me to bite on something and did the tapping tooth test. As it did not hurt when she tapped the tooth but only when I bit on the spongey thing. The dentist said it seemed as though the tooth may be cracked and if so I would need a crown.

I asked her to try giving me a sedative filling to see if that helped as I had read that sometimes it's simply a case that the composite has not bonded properly and the tooth needs to be refilled.

She agreed and put in a sedative filling. As I am going away at the end of the month, she said that I can go back next week and she will replace the filling with a permanent composite one if the sedative filling has managed to sooth the tooth.

However if I am still in pain I will need a crown which she will charge for (minus the cost of the filling)

I have a couple of questions that I would really appreciate if someone can help me with :

A) As I had no pain before my dentist decided to replace my old filling but then suffered the pain after she had filled the tooth - if the tooth was cracked as a result of the new filling - why should I have to pay for the crown? She suggested that she would deduct the cost of the filling from the price of the crown but I feel that i wouldn't need a crown in the first place if she hadn't disturbed and possibly cracked my tooth!

B) Is it advisable to have a sedative filling in place for only a week before having a permanent filling ? Could any problems arise from removing the sedative filling so soon?

C) If I have lost faith in my current dentist due to having no pain and then pain after her treatment - should I demand to see another dentist at their sister branch for no cost as opposed to risking further pain at the hands of a dentist that so far has caused me unnecessary pain?

Many thanks,
Justine

 

[brit]

This doesn't seem to be a dental phobia related question and so should really be asked on a general Dentistry website rather than here.
FWIW:
A - I doubt just changing the filling would cause it to crack. She doesn't have to refund anything but is offering to do so to encourage you to go for the crown which I am not convinced is essential.

B - Doubt it but see C

C- go to a different dentist and get a properly done composite filling and see if it resolves without a crown.
If after changing the filling properly, the pain resolves, wait and see is also a longterm option.

If you do become convinced it is cracked, you should consider rct before a crown in some situations.