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PAIN IN TOOTH LONG AFTER ROOT CANAL

I'm wondering if anyone can help me.
I've been going to a dental school to get cheaper prices on my dental work. The first thing they did was to tell me I needed a root canal and so I let them do it.

That was six months ago and it hurt after they did it. They kept saying the pain would wear off. I think it's also making my sinus blocked up and I have a sinus headache all the time.

Finally they did xrays and the head of endodontry said that the root canal looked beautiful. He tapped on my teeth and I almost went through the ceiling when he tapped lightly on the root canal tooth.

The he tested my teeth for cold and he said that it was the NEXT tooth to the root canal tooth that the gum was sensitive to cold.

He says THAT tooth needs a root canal.

Meanwhile, the original root canal tooth that they did is killing me. I can't chew on that side and even if I put my finger on that tooth it hurts.

I always though that after the nerve had been removed from a tooth you couldn't have pain. This is horrible. Can anyone help? TIA
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PAIN IN TOOTH LONG AFTER ROOT CANAL

frazzedmom
Trailblazer
#1 question....did they recommend having a crown done on that tooth after the root canal? It is pretty common for a tooth/root to fracture after a RCT, IF a crown is not done. The blood supply is out of the tooth, which in a sense 'dries out' the tooth structure, plus having that inner pulp gone, the tooth is just more susceptible to fracturing. Alot of time, teeth w/ root canals can fracture vertically--the length of the root---and if it does that, it's pretty slim of the tooth being saved 😞

Ya--sensitivity is normal for a couple mo's; but with what you are describing--that isn't normal. No, the sensitivity isn't coming from the tooth's nerve itself, BUT if it is fractured, that torquing back & forth when biting can be a killer! Do you have a dull ache from time to time too?





If your gecko is broken, you have a reptile dysfunction.
Message 2 of 230
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PAIN IN TOOTH LONG AFTER ROOT CANAL

I originally went to them because I had lost a lower crown. I was going to get the lower crown when I can afford it and hoping to get that newer root canal tooth crowned too.

You mean it could have fractured??!!

I had been putting off the crown for the newer root canal tooth until the pain went away but it never did go away. Sometimes it feels like a nail going up through my head but that could be coming from the tooth next to it that they now say needs a root canal also.

That side of my face hurts and my sinuses are blocked up a lot on that side, somehow it seems related to teeth.
Message 3 of 230
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PAIN IN TOOTH LONG AFTER ROOT CANAL

frazzedmom
Trailblazer
Yes....it could have fractured, but do have them take an x-ray (the crack may or may not show up) and do some better diagnostic testing. I know quite a few patients who had put off doing a crown, and then ended up losing the tooth altogether. It is a huge bummer.

I'm assuming this is an upper tooth, being you're talking about sinus problems too---that is pretty common. The upper molar roots are really close to the sinus floor--so alot of times those teeth/sinus problems go hand in hand! And, if you have an infection with the tooth/root due to a fracture, the bacteria is constantly 'wicking' itself down the crack & into the sinus--thus the sinus plugginess = (

I guess if I were you, I'd make an app't w/ a dentist---not the school---even though you do get a great deal on the work, but sometimes you just need an answer FAST! (and the schools have to have their docs check off on each & every step...makes for a long frustrating time, sometimes!)

Hang in there.....keep me posted, K???





If your gecko is broken, you have a reptile dysfunction.
Message 4 of 230
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PAIN IN TOOTH LONG AFTER ROOT CANAL

The pain sometimes is a dull pulsuating pain.

Yesterday I made an appointment with another dentist for a second opinion about the necessity for another root canal but he can't see me for weeks, sometime in April.

What other diagnositc testing do you suggest? I could call the dental school and ask to have those tests. They have done tapping on the tooth and xrays. What else is there?
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PAIN IN TOOTH LONG AFTER ROOT CANAL

zagkitty
Enthusiast
It has been several years, but I had a root canal done in a tooth and it continued to hurt for several weeks afterward. They kept looking at it and trying to figure out what was going on. I ended up having a procedure where they cut a window in my gum line and cut off the ends of the tooth, capping them in amalgum (sp?). That solved the problem. This all happened through the local dental school. They called in an oral surgeon specialist to do the work and the room was filled with students watching the whole thing. They didn't charge me for it because I agreed to let everyone watch. It now has a crown. By the way, I have a good friend who is a dentist and comes from a family of dentists. He always told me that I would get the best care at a dental school. I went to the dental school for years until my husband got really good insurance, and then it was cheaper for me to go with a regular dentist. But I know of my dentist through the dental school. Good luck.
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PAIN IN TOOTH LONG AFTER ROOT CANAL

frazzedmom
Trailblazer
yikes zag....I've only assisted on that type of procedure a couple of times & it looked umm...'not fun'!--it's an apicoectomy w/ a retrograde amalgam--very good of you to remember the lingo! I'm impressed = )

newengland--one trick we'd use a 'Tooth Sleuth'--basically a plastic stick with bumps, and depending on how the pt. would bite, it would help to pinpoint which cusp had the crack. Definately call around 1st thing tomorrow, try & get in somewhere--even if it is the school (if you have some extra time). One quick temporary fix, if they could take the tooth out of occlusion at least (so you are putting NO biting force or pressure on at all) that may help you get by til they can figure out the long-term treatment & prognosis.





If your gecko is broken, you have a reptile dysfunction.
Message 7 of 230
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PAIN IN TOOTH LONG AFTER ROOT CANAL

I'm confused about who to go to -- the endo department at the dental school already tested it and didn't do anything about it except to sort of file it down or whatever you call it. The new dentist doesn't do root canals and his secretary gave me the impression that he could tell you if you needed one but I don't know if he'd be able diagnose this tooth.

Maybe I should ask HIM to recommend an endodontrist and try to get an emergency appointment with him?
Message 8 of 230
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PAIN IN TOOTH LONG AFTER ROOT CANAL

frazzedmom
Trailblazer
You wouldn't necessarily need to see an endodontist...any seasoned DDS would be able to diagnose & more than likely treat--unless they do not do endo at all. If you see a specialist, you WILL pay specialist fees = ) Do you have any good friends that can recommend a great DDS in your area? At least for a starting point!





If your gecko is broken, you have a reptile dysfunction.
Message 9 of 230
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PAIN IN TOOTH LONG AFTER ROOT CANAL

This did happen to me...I had root canal and 4 roots were drilled out and much pain persisted after the temporary cap was put on. It turned out that I had a fifth root that wasn't seen the first time. Now the tooth is fine after more drilling to remove it. He may have given me a bunch of nonsense, but that is what I was told. By drilling I mean with the hand bits or wires that they use.
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PAIN IN TOOTH LONG AFTER ROOT CANAL

All of your posts have been helpful -- thanks. What I ended up doing was to make an appt with the endodontrist part of the dental school but I was sort of pushy and said I was thinking that the tooth might be fractured and is there any way to test for that.

First, they just wanted to give me more painkiller but I persisted and so now they are going to take the temp crown off and go inside the tooth with a microscope thing. I hope they really do this -- I don't want to leave without finally knowing what's wrong.

I also have an appt with a regular dentist in April but he knows nothing about root canals his secretary said. He could just look at the other tooth and tell me if I need one.
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PAIN IN TOOTH LONG AFTER ROOT CANAL

stuffins*stuff
Enthusiast
I had root canal 3 yrs ago and complained that it hurt every visit.

My full x-ray came due and when the dentist took it he found that I had a root left in there that was infected!

I ended up having to have it extracted and now I have to get an implant. Its very expensive (with insurance)!

I was very sick with the infection for a couple of months.

Do not let this go. Get it checked out.
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PAIN IN TOOTH LONG AFTER ROOT CANAL

athenazeusdam
Enthusiast
Have them check your tooth with a more advanced x-ray machine. I went through pain for better than a year. I had x-ray after x-ray done where they said nothing was wrong. They even tried that "adjacent tooth" story. The pain was never overly severe...just annoying enough to keep me from eating on that side of my mouth. When my face started to hurt, I went back to them again and was told it was nothing. I went to my regular doctor to see if it was a sinus infection. It wasn't. He put me on yet another antibiotic and sent me back to the dentist.

Imagine my suprise to find out the dentist that had done all the work on my tooth was no longer there. I saw a temporary dentist who saw the problem on one of my OLD x-rays. She told me I would probably lose the tooth and sent me to a specialist. He too, could see the 4th canal on the x-ray. By this point, the infection had gotten into all of the canals and up into my facial bones. Although his treatment of that canal fixed the main pain, I still have discomfort in my face and was told that it could be up to a year before that part of the infection clears up.

Go to a specialist before it is too late.
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PAIN IN TOOTH LONG AFTER ROOT CANAL

Thank you. I'm going today.
Message 14 of 230
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PAIN IN TOOTH LONG AFTER ROOT CANAL

To add to the information already here -- and if it's of any help to anyone else, they took out the temporary filling today and didn't find any evidence of fracture in the tooth. It was VERY painful when they went up inside the tooth so they put some medicine (calcium hy-something or other) up inside it and put another temp on. I am to come back in two weeks and it should have "calmed down." They took xrays from different angles and will see if there was another root that was missed.
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