Hi yankee232,

Thank you for the kind words
I am in the dental field and can offer you some information here.

To make it easier to follow, I will re post some of your thread and answer you in bold type.

<<Last Thursday I had #31 extracted. I was devastated to get the news when I went to my dentist about pain I was having when biting down.>>

FOR THOSE READING THIS, TOOTH #31 IS YOUR LOWER RIGHT SECOND MOLAR. IF YOU NOW HAVE A LARGE OPEN SPACE THERE IT IS BECAUSE YOU EITHER HAD TOOTH #32 (YOUR WISDOM TOOTH) REMOVED (AT SOME POINT) OR YOUR WISDOM TOOTH NEVER CAME IN.

<<Turns out 12 years ago, (31 years old now) the dentist who did my root canal put a FAR too big of a post in and caused the tooth to fracture on the very bottom due to post size.>>

IT IS IMPORTANT TO KNOW THAT THE TOOTH WAS INFECTED FOR AT LEAST 12 YEARS BECAUSE THE ROOT CANAL PROCEDURE CANNOT MAKE THE TOOTH HEALTHY AGAIN AS IT CANNOT CURE THE INFECTION. WHETHER OR NOT YOU HAD ANY ORAL SYMPTOMS OF THE INFECTION DURING THOSE YEARS IS IRRELEVANT BECAUSE MOST TIMES A CHRONIC TOOTH INFECTION IS WITHOUT SYMPTOMS UNTIL THE INFECTION BECOMES VERY SEVERE AND/OR THE INFECTION DETERIORATES THE TOOTH SO BADLY THAT THE TOOTH FRACTURES CAUSING IT TO HURT WHEN YOU BITE DOWN.

DENTISTS PUT A POST IN A ROOT CANALED TOOTH WHEN THE ORIGINAL INFECTION HAS DECAYED A GOOD PORTION OF THE TOOTH STRUCTURE AS THE POST IS INTENDED TO GIVE THE TOOTH SOME RETENTION. IN ORDER TO RESTORE THAT TOOTH WITH A LARGE FILLING OR A CROWN, THE TOOTH NEEDS TO BE BUILT UP AROUND THE POST SO THAT THE FILLING OR CROWN HAS SOMETHING TO HOLD ONTO.

THERE ARE MANY PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH DENTAL POSTS IRRELEVANT OF THEIR SIZE. THE POST ALWAYS CAUSES SMALL STRESS FRACTURES TO OCCUR IN THE TOOTH SURROUNDING THE POST AS TEETH ARE NOT MEANT TO BE SO RIGID. THOSE FRACTURE AREAS CAN EVENTUALLY BREAK THROUGH THE TOOTH COMPLETELY BECAUSE ROOT CANALED TEETH ARE CHRONICALLY DECAYING INSIDE. POSTS CAN ALSO CAUSE FURTHER TRAUMA AND INJURY TO SURROUNDING BONE IT THE POST PERFORATES THE TOOTH ENTIRELY AND BECOMES DRIVEN INTO THE BONE.

<< (I wonder if I should try to pursue some sort of malpractice action, as I am now missing a large tooth due to his mistake).>>

YOU GENERALLY HAVE 2 YEARS FROM THE DATE OF SERVICE TO FILE A DENTAL CLAIM AGAINST A DENTIST FOR WRONG DOING. IN YOUR CASE IT'S BEEN 12 YEARS AND ACCORDING TO MALPRACTICE LAW WHICH GENERALLY FOLLOWS WHAT IS CALLED THE "STANDARD OF CARE" RULE, YOUR DENTIST DID NOT DO ANYTHING THAT WOULD BE CONSIDERED OUTSIDE OF THAT STANDARD OF CARE RULING.

IT IS IMPORTANT FOR YOU TO KNOW THAT YOU ARE NOW MISSING TOOTH #31 BECAUSE 12 YEARS OR SO AGO, IT DEVELOPED AN INFECTION OF WHICH THERE WAS/IS NO DENTAL PROCEDURE THAT COULD CURE THAT INFECTION. SO THEREFORE THAT TOOTH HAS BEEN CHRONICALLY INFECTED THAT ENTIRE TIME. IT WAS JUST A MATTER OF TIME BEFORE YOU EXPERIENCED SYMPTOMS.

<<I also had a very bad infection form near the fracture site and started treatment of antibiotics 2 days prior to extraction. That's besides the point.>>

ACTUALLY THE INFECTION THAT DEVELOPED IN THIS TOOTH HAD BEEN BREWING FOR 12 YEARS. THE DETERIORATION CAUSED BY THE BACTERIA HAD REACHED A POINT WHERE IT WAS PROLIFERATING FROM THE OBVIOUS FRACTURE. CHANCES ARE, THIS INFECTION WAS VISIBLE ON DENTAL XRAYS OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS IF NOT LONGER. DID YOU HAVE REGULAR DENTAL CHECK UPS AND XRAYS AND HAD YOUR DENTIST EVER MENTIONED ANYTHING ABOUT THIS TOOTH TO YOU OVER THE LAST 12 YEARS?

<<Tooth was extracted at a specialist using sedation. ( I have TERRIBLE anxiety issues), woke up all went very well. I went home, rested, iced and continued to take Ammoxicilin antibiotic.>>

OKAY, GLAD YOU HAD IT REMOVED BY AN ORAL SURGEON.

<<I have no pain in that area now, but I'm very depressed knowing I am now missing a large portion of my mouth to chew and will likely undergo some sort of implant in the future as I don't want my lower teeth shifting around and me causing more real tooth loss. (Still on Ammox. for another 3 days).>>

REGARDING THE REPLACEMENT OF THIS TOOTH. JUST SO YOU KNOW, MANY PEOPLE CAN CHEW JUST FINE WITHOUT REPLACING TOOTH #31. THE CONCERN OF NOT REPLACING IT HAS TO DO WITH THE TOOTH ABOVE IT, TOOTH #2, WHICH WILL EVENTUALLY DRIFT DOWNWARDS IF IT DOES NOT HAVE A LOWER TOOTH TO PREVENT IT FROM DRIFTING DOWN. YOUR DENTIST CAN EVALUATE YOUR BITE AND TELL YOU IF TOOTH #2 IS BEING SUPPORTED BY TOOTH #30 BELOW IT. IF THAT IS THE CASE, YOU MAY DO JUST FINE WITHOUT REPLACING #31.

ALSO, IT IS IMPORTANT TO KNOW THAT TOOTH #31 WAS BADLY INFECTED FOR 12 YEARS. I KNOW THAT SEEMS LIKE HOW CAN THAT BE IF IT DIDN'T BOTHER YOU, BUT AS I SAID, MOST ORAL INFECTIONS ARE A SYMPTOMATIC UNTIL THE INFECTION IS SEVERE. THE POINT HERE IS THAT THE BONE IN THE AREA OF TOOTH #31 MAY NOT BE VERY HEALTHY DUE TO THE LONG TERM INFECTION IN THAT AREA AND IT MAY NEVER HEAL TO A COMPLETELY HEALTHY STATE. IT WOULD THEN BE RISKY TO PLACE A DENTAL IMPLANT IN THAT AREA DUE TO THE CHANGES THAT HAVE OCCURRED IN THERE. THE RISK OF IMPLANT FAILURE AND INFECTION IS ELEVATED ANYTIME A DENTAL IMPLANT IS PLACED IN THE JAWBONE WHERE THERE USE TO BE A ROOT CANALED TOOTH.

<<One thing I am noticing, is today is the first day I tried to bite down on that side of a small amount of banana, I feel like the top #6 tooth which had a cavity filled, is hurting when I bite on that side of the extraction.. almost like it's hitting a deeper area now.>>

IT IS TOO SOON TO BE EATING ON THAT SIDE OF YOUR MOUTH. YOU SHOULD AVOID CHEWING ANYWHERE NEAR THAT WOUND UNTIL THE GUM TISSUE HAS CLOSED OVER. TOOTH #6 IS YOUR UPPER RIGHT CANINE AND SEVERAL TEETH IN FRONT OF THAT SPACE. IF #6 IS HURTING TO CHEW THEN IT SHOULD BE EVALUATED BY YOUR DENTIST.

<< Could my bite be off? Can this be adjusted? >>

YOUR BITE COULD BE OFF AS YOU STILL HAVE BONE AND MUSCLE INFLAMMATION FROM THE ORAL SURGERY THAT WILL SLOWLY SUBSIDE OVER THE COURSE OF SEVERAL WEEKS. HAVE YOUR DENTIST EVALUATE YOUR #6 AND BITE.

<<I'm suffer from depression as is, but this has me feeling really down lately. I am very saddened, and having some dark thoughts.>>

I'M COMPLETELY UNDERSTAND THAT DEPRESSION CAN ELEVATE DURING TIMES OF STRESS AND UNCERTAINTY. I ENCOURAGE YOU TO THINK OF THIS EXPERIENCE FROM A POSITIVE PERSPECTIVE IN THAT YOU TRULY DID YOUR HEALTH A HUGE FAVOR BY HAVING THAT DISEASED TOOTH REMOVED. YOUR IMMUNE SYSTEM IS YELLING "THANK YOU"!! REGARDING THE LARGE SPACE, THAT WILL FEEL LESS LARGE AS THE SITE HEALS. MOST OF THE TIME PEOPLE EVENTUALLY FORGET THE SPACE IS EVEN THERE AND GO ON TO EAT AND LIVE JUST FINE WITHOUT THAT TOOTH. MANY PEOPLE BY THE TIME THEY ARE IN THEIR 30'S ARE ACTUALLY MISSING ONE OR MORE OF THEIR MOLARS DUE TO INFECTION, DECAY OR WHATEVER AND THEY DO JUST FINE. SO TRY TO FOCUS ON THE POSITIVE ASPECT OF ALL OF THIS AND BELIEVE ME, YOU WILL BE OKAY )

Bryanna