name of procedure

[patient]

I had to have a tooth fixed. It would not numb properly. It needed root canal but under the circumstances it could not be done. What happened instead was that some ointment was put inside the tooth which will allow the tooth to repair itself and form particles of calcium or something and that will get rid of existing decay that could not be drilled out as it was too sensitive.

Can anyone tell me what this procedure is? I cannot remember and had never heard of it before and I was too concerned about the fact that my tooth was too sensitive to be drilled all the way down to let the name of the procedure register in my brain.

Thanks in advance

 

[brit]

I had to have a tooth fixed. It would not numb properly. It needed root canal but under the circumstances it could not be done. What happened instead was that some ointment was put inside the tooth which will allow the tooth to repair itself and form particles of calcium or something and that will get rid of existing decay that could not be drilled out as it was too sensitive.

Can anyone tell me what this procedure is? I cannot remember and had never heard of it before and I was too concerned about the fact that my tooth was too sensitive to be drilled all the way down to let the name of the procedure register in my brain.

Thanks in advance

I'm not a dentist but this sounds to me like a temporary measure to allow the tooth to settle. You would do best to get the tooth properly treated by a specialist endodontist as I doubt it will remain painfree as it is at the moment.

 

[patient]

I'm not a dentist but this sounds to me like a temporary measure to allow the tooth to settle. You would do best to get the tooth properly treated by a specialist endodontist as I doubt it will remain painfree as it is at the moment.

I think you are barking up the wrong tree. The tooth is a bit sensitive and the dentist said it would be for a while. Also if the dentist thought I needed to see a specialist endodontist, he would have referred me or at least suggested it as an option. I think what I put below is what I have had done.

Could the days of the root canal, for decades the symbol of the most excruciating kind of minor surgery, finally be numbered?
Scientists have made advances in treating tooth decay that they hope will let them restore tooth tissue—and avoid the painful dental procedure. Several recent studies have demonstrated in animals that procedures involving tooth stem cells appear to regrow the critical, living tooth tissue known as pulp.
Treatments that prompt the body to regrow its own tissues and organs are known broadly as regenerative medicine. There is significant interest in figuring out how to implement this knowledge to help the many people with cavities and disease that lead to tooth loss.


I would like to add that root canal treatment in itself is not a painful procedure. I have had it before and it was fine, however I have never in my entire life had a problem with a tooth that could not be numb properly. Injections or drilling dont bother me.

 

[brit]

What kind of informed consent did you give to this experimental procedure?

 

[patient]

What kind of informed consent did you give to this experimental procedure?

When the dentist said he wanted to do this method I simply went along with it thinking anything is better than nothing.

Anyway, I called another dental practice today and they said because my gum/face got more numb after the treatment has taken place indicates that the dentist did not wait enough time before starting to drill. However, I have never had to wait a long time before. They just numb me up and a couple of minutes it is sufficiently numb. Maybe the part of my mouth needed extra time, I don't know but I was told that I need to tell the dentist this when I next go back. Then they said did your dentist suggest re-examining the tooth again soon after so see if the procedure worked, and I said no. I am booked in for a clean and at that clean, I presume he will look at the tooth again and access matters then. The person said to me, when is your cleaning appointment, and I said in a couple of weeks and he said to me, it is not wise to wait a couple of weeks to have the tooth that was worked on looked at to see what the situation is. He said if it was him, he would go a lot sooner than that. I then said, if the treatment has not worked and the only alternative is root canal, I am a little aprehensive about it because I have lost faith in the dentist because he tried the first time and it did not work.

I was then told that perhaps he did not inject me in the right spot for the numbness to fully take effect. I said I had to have two lots of injections and have never had to have that before. One has always been enough for a filling or root canal.

Unfortunately he said to me that because I am on denplan I cannot switch dentists in the middle of treatment (and by that he means until I have been given the all clear about this tooth).

I am not usually a nervous patient but under the circumstances I do not think this dentist knows what he is doing poperly and one person on here suggested I be seen by a specialist that specialises in root canals and the insides of teeth. I was told that if I were to ask for that it would be VERY VERY expensive and would certainly not be covered on denplan by any means, so I said oh dear what do I do and he said I need to write to the surgery, put all my questions and queries down and see what they say. He said it is always better to write to the surgery rather than on the phone so they have a factual record of my problem.

When I first met my new dentist he took a complete xray and went into great detail about every tooth and discussed what each tooth was like etc... no dentist has done that with me before so I was impressed and thought he was good, until Fridays appointment which did not go well.

I am at a loss as to what to do now.

 

[patient]

Does anyone want to reply to this? I would appreciate it thanks

 

[carole]

I don't know who you spoke to but they gave you some very good advise. I have not heard of the procedure that your dentist did either, as brit stated it is a new one on us. Could you have misunderstood what he said to you and that he has put a dressing in the tooth to calm the inflamed nerve down.

If that is the case then what he did will calm things down which will allow him to get you numb with no problem so that he can do the rct with you being comfortable.

I think you need an appointment sooner than the one you have to be able to discuss with your dentist what he is planning on doing, or ring and ask what the plans are for your tooth. If after this you are still not sure or satisfied then write to the practice manager and put your concerns in writing as you have been advised to do.

All the best to you

 

[patient]

I have not misunderstood anything and will report back when I have seen dentist again.

 

[carole]

Okay it is a very interesting mystery that I am looking forward to hearing about. Maybe one of the dentists on here know what it was you had done and the name for it.

Once we start on this dental road and get curious it is amazing what we all learn. I used to not want even the word dentist mentioned but now I am really interested in knowing everything. I have found a bit of knowledge has helped me deal with my phobia and nerves. I would never have believed it would help, I still have a bit of not wanting to see any tools though but that is a work in progress.

 

[brit]

Okay it is a very interesting mystery that I am looking forward to hearing about. Maybe one of the dentists on here know what it was you had done and the name for it.

Once we start on this dental road and get curious road it is amazing what we all learn. I used to not want even the word dentist mentioned but now I am really interested in knowing everything. I have found a bit of knowledge has helped me deal with my phobia and nerves. I would never have believed it would help, I still have a bit of not wanting to see any tools though but that is a work in progress.

The only thing it sounds a bit like, is the idea that you go into a tooth to do either a big filling or if necessary a root canal.
In patient's case however a root canal had already been started whereas what I have heard of from a dentist I trust is the idea of removing most of the decay - but maybe leaving a little bit behind (to avoid root canal) and then sealing with a filling and monitoring.
Once you have started a root canal - assuming it was clinically necessary in the first place - I don't see how you can abandon it permanently without problems arising in future.

 

[carole]

I know brit I am as puzzled by this as you are and I would have thought the same. Having had my adventures with rct's as have us all this is something new.

I did ask if it was a dressing that had been put in to give the root chance to calm down, but no patient says no it isn't.

Guess we will have to wait until they go for their next appointment and then all will become clear

 

[vicki]

From another thread:

I have looked at the tooth in the mirror and the fillig looks very unprofessionally done. It looks like I have a lump of chewing gum stuck on my tooth. It is a white filling but compared to a white one my previous dentist did, it looks shoddy.

This sounds very much like a temporary filling to me (especially since I must have had around 15 or 16 temporary fillings and sedative dressings during various stages of several root canal treatments over the past year). If the dentist is intending to monitor the tooth and probably do further treatment at a later stage, then it would make sense that it's a temporary filling rather than a permanent one.

Could this have been the mystery procedure maybe?:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pulp_capping

Just a guess....

 

[patient]

Yippee

 

[patient]

From another thread:



This sounds very much like a temporary filling to me (especially since I must have had around 15 or 16 temporary fillings and sedative dressings during various stages of several root canal treatments over the past year). If the dentist is intending to monitor the tooth and probably do further treatment at a later stage, then it would make sense that it's a temporary filling rather than a permanent one.

Could this have been the mystery procedure maybe?:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pulp_capping

Just a guess....

Yes I think you are right. I looked it up and found this.

a material (Calcium hydroxide) is placed directly over the exposed pulp tissue, has been suggested as a way to promote pulp healing and generate reparative dentin. If successful, this procedure precludes the need for more invasive, more extensive and more expensive treatment. A number of factors have been shown to have an impact on direct pulp cap success, such as impeccable area isolation, gentle use of instrument, disinfection of the tooth cavity. A very careful approach removing tooth decay with minimizing tooth trauma during the procedure to minimum leads to successful tooth vitality preservation and perhaps never needing additional therapies.

 

[carole]

Well there seems to be our answer, I did suggest that it was a temp filling but patient said it was a permanent one.

I am just glad we now have an answer WhoooooooooooooooooooooooHoooooooooooooooooooooo

 

[patient]

 

[patient]

Update.....

I go to see my dentist again for a general hygiene clean (we do not have a hygienist). Since my last visit where he could not do root canal but did pulp healing treatment instead, the tooth has settled down and I do not need to take painkillers anymore. No doubt he will ask if it feels ok and I will say yes. He did say last time that the tooth would be a little sensitive for a while but would hopefully settle down and it has taken two weeks. I honestly thought it would only take a few days so was a bit upset and thought it had not worked so was not looking forward to rct because of what happened last time. Now hopefully it looks like no more treatment is needed on the tooth.

I am still not sure if this dentist is the right dentist for me. I only had two visits with him and was ready to quit and go somewhere else based on a few things I was not happy with

He does not agree with electric toothbrushes (although loads of people swear by them)
I get the feeling he is against electric flossers
He was reluctant to use gum numbing gel telling me it would not work

However, what I was impressed with was that when I first went to him, he xrayed my mouth and put it up and looked at every tooth on the xray and went into great deal to explain what each tooth was like. That took ages and no dentist has ever done that with me before.

I guess no dentist is perfect and you have to weigh up the good with the bad and in all honesty I think I need a few more visits to really discover his technique before dismissing him completely.

 

[vicki]

I am still not sure if this dentist is the right dentist for me. I only had two visits with him and was ready to quit and go somewhere else based on a few things I was not happy with

He does not agree with electric toothbrushes (although loads of people swear by them)
I get the feeling he is against electric flossers

Some people like electric toothbrushes and flossers and some people don't, I thinks it's personal choice.

I've seen loads of dentists over the past 11 or 12 years (mainly because I used to go to an NHS practice so I ended up with a different dentist every 18 months or so )... Some of them told me that electric toothbrushes were the only way to clean teeth properly, some said that manual toothbrushes do the job just as well so there's no point in wasting money on an electric toothbrush (because it's all in the technique you use) and some did a really impressive sales pitch for the latest electric toothbrush to try and get me to buy one from reception after the appointment.

Although I've had quite a few root canals (in the middle of number 7 at the moment ), these were all down to problems with erosion caused by acid reflux and I've never had tooth decay, plaque, tartar or anything else on my teeth, so I've never been anywhere near a hygienist because I've never needed a cleaning. But everyone is different. Some people need or like a regular clean, some people don't. Some people need or like electric toothbrushes and some don't. I don't think there's an exact answer to this one; the main thing is that you're cleaning and flossing your teeth properly every day.

He was reluctant to use gum numbing gel telling me it would not work

Over the past few years, I've had many many injections in most places in my mouth, some of them were more or less painless and some of them were downright bloody awful (because the dentist was rough). Some used the numbing gel but most didn't. On its own, the numbing gel doesn't actually make the injection pain-free, what it does is numb the gums so that you don't feel the split second when the needle goes in. Whether or not you feel the injection depends on what type of injection it is, where it is, but more importantly, on how the injection is given. From experience, the slower it is, the more comfortable it is, but it does depend on your dentist.

Most of the dentists I saw at the practice I used to go to wouldn't use the numbing gel either; they would tell me that they didn't have it or that it didn't work because the injection was in the back of my mouth so they couldn't use it anyway. A lot of the injections for the root canal treatment that I've had over the past year or so have been at the back of my mouth and guess what... the numb gel has been used every single time and it has worked. Pretty amazing considering that it "doesn't work"! Either both my dentist and also the endodontist who's doing all the root canal treatment have magic powers (unlikely, although I'm sure they'd like me to believe that they have! ) or the dentists I saw at the old practice just couldn't be bothered (more likely). Personally, I suspect it's the latter.

Not using the numbing gel doesn't necessarily mean that injections will be painful; your dentist might be really good at giving painless injections. But you do need to be sure that they are doing everything they can to make things as comfortable as possible for you.

I guess no dentist is perfect and you have to weigh up the good with the bad and in all honesty I think I need a few more visits to really discover his technique before dismissing him completely.

Maybe you just need more time and a few more visits. Some people instantly like a new dentist from the first appointment and others take a bit more time. If you're still not happy, then you can always search for somewhere else.

 

[carole]

Good luck for you up coming appointment

I would give your dentist a few more visits before you write him off. When I first saw my dentist I couldn't decide what I thought, nothing happened as such I just wasn't sure. My dentist is young and female, I have always seen male dentists and usually they have been a bit older too. I now am really happy with the treatment and the way she deals with me, I am just hoping that she doesn't leave the practice I attend.

When I first needed an injection for work she used the gel but now she doesn't bother and I don't need it, she give's a totally pain free injection and she is one of the best dentists I have ever had.

Hopefully you will get used to how your dentist works and will feel comfortable with him soon. I think the fact he went to the trouble to do the procedure he did to give your tooth a chance tells a lot. I would say that he is putting your well being first. The tooth may need a root canal at some point in a few years but I am really pleased that it is settled. My own dentist does the cleans as they don't have a hygienist either. They do say that you may be a bit sensitive after for a few days, but I have always been fine after she has done the cleaning with no soreness or anything.

All the best to you

 

[patient]

Someone replied with the name of the procedure and it has been removed... why?

This is not the first time one of my posts has been removed