Strange Tenderness After Root Canal - Normal ?

[LottF]

So I had root canal done on my front tooth 2 months ago as I chipped it in a bicycle accident and had biting pressure sensitivity and cold lingering sensitivity .

I think the tooth was ever so slightly pushed back during the accident and the dentist said there is only slight mobility but it’s not visibly loose or anything

But 2 months on after the root canal and it’s still tender when touched from behind the tooth, some days are better than others but even bumps in the road when driving or the jolt of walking I can feel tenderness and the most annoying thing is when I talk when I use words where my tongue rubs the back of the tooth it feels tender.

There is not cold sensitivity anymore like before the root canal

Biting pressure is better and not like it was before the root canal although still a bit tender when food pushes against the tooth from behind.

There is no aching or anything and no disturbed sleep.

I’ve been avoiding eating on it and when I do it’s been mainly soft foods

The weird thing is the tooth feels more sensitive if I avoid touching it or eating on it , once I start eating on it it feels better and not as sensitive which is strange.

I am quite guilty of keep “testing” it and pushing on it with my tongue so could that be aggravating it ?

It’s on my mind pretty much all day and I’m very stressed and anxious about it

As I said the jolt of walking or bumps in the road when driving I can feel it a bit so does that suggest it’s the ligaments that are bruised or the tooth itself ?

One thing of note is that I had some bruising/damage on the gum at the bottom of the tooth after the root canal procedure which took a few weeks to heal , I think that was from the rubber dam that was used , could that be causing problems still ?

About a month ago I emailed the Endodontist who did the root canal and he said in some cases it is normal for the tooth to be tender for a few months after the treatment, he has a good reputation and was pleased with the procedure at the time so I have no reason to doubt him.

X Rays didn’t show anything obvious going on.

I just wanted to get more opinions really.

Thanks for any help.

 

[LottF]

Also when I feather my finger over the back of the tooth near the top half I get the sensitivity

 

[MountainMama]

I can’t answer your question but I have the same issue. I had a root canal then actually had my front tooth extracted and an implant put in and I still have a really tender and sensitive spot behind the tooth, exactly like you described. Mine hurts most when saying certain words or spitting after brushing my teeth. My dentist says everything looks great.

 

[Gordon]

It's not unusual for root treated teeth to be slightly sensitive to pressure for a wee while after treatment. I've got an upper premolar which is fine, unless I press on (checks, ouch!) just exactly the right part of my cheek on the outside.
It's possible that the bite is a bit heavy on the tooth if it was pushed back slightly, has anyone checked this?

 

[LottF]

Thanks Gordon

how long has yours been ? What exactly is going on you think , is it just bruising from the root canal treatment ?

Yes the bite has been adjusted a couple of times on mine and seems ok now , my bite does seem to change sometimes though strangely from day to day to day ,
think it’s stress and anxiety

in fact I think half the problem I have is that I’m so stressed out about it the whole time , sometimes unknowingly during the day I find my tongue pressing against the roof of my mouth , and as I said I’ve been quite guilty of keep testing the tooth to see if there’s pain there with my tongue by pressing against it

As I said sometimes it feels better and not as sensitive after I’ve eaten on it , it seems to be more sensitive if I don’t touch it then the first time I go to touch it again it’s hypersensitive , any ideas why that would be ?

Thanks for any help

 

[Gordon]

Mine was done about 15 years ago
I honestly don't know what causes it in my case, it's a very specific place on the side of my cheek. X-rays look fine and there are no other symptoms. I can hit the tooth pretty firmly with a dental mirror or suchlike and no issues. I think I'm just weird!

Stress leads to clenching and grinding which can upset the ligaments that hold the tooth in place, especially if you're aggravating things by poking around at the tooth.

 

[LottF]

Ok thanks , so you think it’s fairly normal for the ligaments to take a few months to heal ? The sensation I have is only since the root canal was doneit’s not the same biting pressure pain I had before the procedure so it’s obvious the procedure has upset something .

And as I said there’s no thermal sensitivity or aching thankfully.

But the jolt of walking I can feel on the tooth if that makes sense, does that sound like bruised ligaments ?

Many thanks for your help

 

[Gordon]

Yes, they certainly can do.
Sharp short duration pain from contact would tend to point towards the periodontal ligaments.

 

[LottF]

Thanks again Gordon

So is there anything I can do other than be patient ? Is it best to avoid eating on it ?

 

[Gordon]

You've had it checked to make sure that you're not biting too heavily on it? If you haven't, then get that done, otherwise, yes, time will take care of it. Eating on it is fine.

 

[LottF]

Thanks again , yeah I had the bite checked and some adjustments made and the bite seems ok now I think

As I said though sometimes my bite feels different from day to day which I think has a lot to do with stress

When I wake it up the bite seems normal but towards the end of the day it seems a bit off and misaligned , seems strange

I am a real bad worrier so things like this really stress me out to the point of it’s all I think about all day.

 

[Gordon]

You'll be clenching during the day, hence the strange feeling. I tend to do it when I'm concentrating hard, try to watch for yourself doing it and take a break if possible.

It might be worth getting yourself a cheap mouthguard, one of the boil in the bag things will do, if you can wear that during the day from time to time, that may help a bit. If it does then it might be worth investing in a proper dentist made one.

 

[LottF]

Thanks Gordon

Just one more question , it seems to be hypersensitive all day so talking and any pressure from behind its quite tender , but then after I have my dinner in the evening it feels better and not hypersensitive or tender , the first few bites are a bit sensitive then after that it’s ok until the same process the next day , any idea why that would be ? My dinner in the evening is the first real time I eat on it as I’ve been avoiding it during the day, it just seems strange that it’s really tender when not going near it and eating on it makes it feel better , I thought it would have been the opposite ?

It’s really hard to explain.

As I said I do seem to clench my tongue against the roof of my mouth without knowing I’m doing it during the day so maybe that has something do with it ? And when my tongue presses against just so happens to be the bit on the gum where the root canal was done and I had that cut/bruising from the rubber dam.

Thanks for any help

 

[Gordon]

Sorry, I'm running out of ideas. Best I can suggest is that it's pressure from your parafunction (tongue thrusting) during the day that's causing something.