Worried about a sore lower molar suddenly sensitive to pressure

[Karenw]

She stood up and walked??! I was asked to sit up but flopped back on the chair while the nurse and dentist apparently looked at me then each other as I slept, not really knowing what to do. My husband had to lift me off cradled in his arms and carry me down the road like this to where he'd parked. Afterwards I was largely out of it for the following 2-3 days.

I hope your friend liked cheese....

 

[Judythecat]

It does sound like you had a lot. My appointment was late afternoon, and I definitely walked out to the car, had a sleep for an hour or so, then was absolutely fine and had dinner as normal in the evening.

 

[Karenw]

To update.....

I've summarised my treatment experience including IV sedation with midazolam, the appointments and post-treatment recovery in the hope it might help anyone else undergoing root canal treatment and/or sedation.

I had my first RTC treatment back on 19 March followed by the second 3 weeks later on 16 April.

By this time, following a lot of stress and anxiety both related to the tooth plus a few other unrelated issues, I was in fairly poor shape. A week earlier I'd had my first ever night hospitalised in A&E fearing a stroke or heart attack following a weird collapsing spell. I had soaring BP190/100, a pulse of about 130 and feared I might not be fit enough for the sedation but it went ahead as planned and I was thankful for it. The midazolam was wonderful and put an end to my previous 2-3 weeks of anxiety and my BP, pulse etc returned to normal afterwards.

As for the actual treatment, IV sedation really is nothing to worry about - even in my state. The needle was inserted into my elbow and I barely felt it. Nor did I feel it taking effect but was asked to lie down on the chair rather than sit and that's the last thing I remember of the early stages. He started off by using a dam but later removed it to gain better access then used files with dental floss attached - I remember opening my eyes slightly and seeing them, understood what he was doing but couldn't care less. I could hear the bleep of the oximeter and apparently tried to sit up a few times to check my pulse rate and sats and, on one occasion, I felt I wasn't as sedated as I wanted to be so pointed firmly to my IV and was given a little extra midazolam. The dentist then made a comment and asked a question at which point, in order to answer even though I was mostly asleep, I reached into my mouth to remove whatever was holding my jaws apart, grunted, tossed it across the floor then fell asleep again. My action held up the treatment because the surgery didn't have a spare and had to arrange for one to be brought from another surgery. This also meant he didn't have time to clean out all the canals on this appointment. Oooops!

As the treatment ended, I came round pretty much straight away although was a bit unco-ordinated and dopey but managed to get off the chair, wobble my way down the stairs and out to the car to be driven home, vaguely aware of the journey and able to direct my husband when he took a wrong turn. I felt absolutely fine with no after effects - no headache, pain, nausea, dizziness or anything unpleasant. At home I had a few sips of squash then went to bed and slept for about 3 hours before waking and having an early morning snack, still with no pain.

The dentist/surgeon said the treatment had gone reasonably well but he wasn't 100% confident. In order to be successful he needed to get to within 2mm of the apices of my tooth roots but my canals were not very accessible and he would need to "give it some thought" in preparation for the follow-up appointment. I had 4.5mg of midazolam.

Within 2-3 days, all the pain of my abscess, ie the jarring when walking, sensitivity against my tongue and vibration/echo felt around my jaw was gone. I was told I might need painkillers - but there was no pain at all which, I think, is a little unusual.

By the time of the follow-up appointment, I was in an even worst state although not so much anxiety this time but maybe a bit of a bug which had knocked me for the previous 5 days and left me feeling quite ropy. I wasn't sure I'd even get to the surgery, but I did although as soon as I went inside I had to go out to get some fresh air. It was all quite embarrassing then as soon as I returned, I was given midazolam immediately to help settle me down - and it worked.

This time I needed 9.5mg in divided doses. I heard the drill as treatment started so pointed to my IV to request a top-up then don't remember much else until the dentist took three x-rays at various points. I remember these which felt about 5 minutes apart but, apparently, was much further apart. Normally I would gag as the strip-holders were inserted hence I usually have pan-oral x-rays instead, but wasn't bothered by them this time and actually felt quite comfortable, even after feeling ill for the previous 5 days.

Regarding accessing my canals, the surgery had bought a new sonic hand-held tool which gave much easier access and the dentist was now able to get to the 1mm of the apices and afterwards said he was very happy with his work and much more confident.

I'd had a much larger dose of midazolam and was much more dopey when coming round and quite wobbly although it wasn't unpleasant and, again, I didn't feel ill - infact I actually felt very much better than I had on arrival. I was also very relieved that it was all over.

I had no pain over the following days, so no need for painkillers - again I'd been told to expect some pain, but it took longer to rid myself of the sedative. 4 days later I was still a little wobbly and dizzy and talked a lot of rubbish, often getting confused or losing track of what I was talking about.

For the first month or two after treatment ended, the tooth felt strange - a sensation of being quite 'large' if that makes sense and not feeling as though it was mine or belonged in my mouth. It was never painful but on brushing it gently, it was fine with the biting surface was brushed but when brushed on the sides or at a slight angle then it felt 'bruised'. I could chew on it but tended not to. Also, in mornings or damp weather, my tooth/jaw would feel quite 'big' around the abscess site, rather like a swollen body joint.

I had a dental checkup after 2 months with my own dentist who said everything looked fine then said it can take 3 years for healing to be complete and to determine if the RTC has been successful. Now, 3 months following treatment, it seems to be settling more. The sensitivity on brushing has reduced and I'm starting to chew on it more and the tooth is beginning to feel more 'normal'.

It also seems I have had the abscess, undiagnosed, for at least 20 years.

Post RTC x-rays attached.

 

[Mazey]

Thank you for the update!