Hi Buster

The truth of the matter is this, sometimes dentists are hesitant to suggest the removal of a root canaled tooth especially to a new patient because they know that this suggestion is frowned upon by most of their peers and certainly by the big kahunas that govern the dental societies. No one wants to jeopardize their livelihood by going against the tide which I have seen happen many times. So if the tooth is not yet a full blown abscess, they may suggest to let it wait or have it "tested" by various means. Ironically, most of the testing methods even though there is some validity to them, are also frowned upon by those same kahunas. It's all about passing the baton to the next guy so as to not have to stand alone on the decision and through this action it confirms that the "patient" ultimately made the decision to remove this tooth. There are some dentists who do not bother to jump through these hoops and just lay down the facts as they are and take their chances with the rest of it. Fortunately that number of dentists is growing but at a snails pace. I hope I have explained that okay. If not let me know and I will try to put it another way.

The fact is that all root canaled teeth are chronically infected and there is no way around that nor is there any means of making that tooth healthy again. The darkened spot above the root as you have stated indicates that the bacteria has proliferated beyond the tooth. Some dentists will even call if "scar tissue". Generally that dark area is a cyst, similar to a pimple, and it is collecting bacteria as a means of trying to contain it within that space. However, due to the vascularity of the mouth that cyst will continue to be nourished by the blood, it will continue to grow and the bacteria will continue to multiply.

The acupuncturist can identify which meridians this tooth follows and where they lead to elsewhere in the body. He can tell you if he feels there are any irritations or disruptions along those meridians at this exact time. But he cannot tell you that this tooth is nothing to worry about for the long term.

The retained deciduous teeth can become a problem so they need to be monitored. Frequently these teeth end up infected and need to be removed. But dental x-rays are pretty good at detecting problems with these type of teeth.

Two things.... if you decide to see the acupuncturist, keep in mind what I have told you here about the information that he is able to provide to you. Also, if you decide to remove this tooth, before choosing a dentist to do that, make these questions a part of that discussion:

1)Unless he is an oral surgeon, ask him if he performs oral surgery on a regular basis?

2) Does he remove the periodontal ligament, debride the socket of all necrotic tissue and bone and rinse with copious amounts of saline?

3) Does he place bone grafts, if so, what material does he recommend using and why?

If you can and you want to, post the xray here. Let me know if you have other questions...
Bryanna