<<WHAT ELSE DO YOU THINK COULD BE CAUSING THIS LONG TERM PAIN?>>

I wish I knew but I've had so many claims over the years that I'm cynical these days. It wasn't just the septoplasty...I saw a dentist and he said it was probably the tooth and so I did the root canal and still had the pain afterwards. At the time, I concluded that the tooth wasn't the problem since I just had the root canal and my tooth didn't hurt and I believe the x-rays were clean. A TMJ specialist said the pain could be muscular in nature and probably due to clenching at night, so I had a night-guard done. Strangely enough, I found some relief from wearing the night guard but no idea how that would alleviate the infection, unless of course I was clenching and also infected at the same time.

<<HAVE YOU HAD AN MRI OF YOUR SKULL TO RULE OUT A TUMOR?>>
Yes, I had a MRI done twice many years ago when this first started happening. They both were negative.

<< WHEN YOU HAD THE DEVIATED SEPTUM DONE, DID YOU HAVE A SCAN DONE THEN?>>
Yes, I really felt I was misled at the time into getting the septoplasty because I was grasping for a solution. I had a scan done and the septum was slightly deviated. But since I was complaining about "pain", I guess the doctor felt compelled to provide an answer and I was willing to try it if it meant being pain-free. The scan didn't show anything else at the time.


<<YOU SAID YOU HAD PAIN AND THEN THE RC DONE. COULD HAVE BEEN THAT THIS TOOTH WAS INFECTED AND THE ONLY SYMPTOM YOU HAD WAS PAIN UNDER YOUR CHEEK. WHY DID HE DO THE RC AT THAT TIME?>>
Yes, when the pain started, I had no idea it was tooth-related. I went to an ENT first, actually multiple ENTs, and no one saw anything until the septoplasty guy. After the septoplasty, I was still having pain and I was constantly searching for answers. I went to a neurologist who said negative on nerve pain etc. Like I said earlier, I went to multiple dentists, some who said it was clenching and others just said they didn't see anything. Since it was so long ago, I can't remember exactly but when I did the RC, I believe it was during a regular dental examination and the infection showed up on the x-ray. That was when I was hoping the RC was the cause of the problem. However, it still persisted afterwards and at the time, after chasing so many dead-ends, I assumed the RC was another one.

If I had known the things you were mentioning now about the inaccessible canals and draining to the sinus, I would have been more persistent regarding the infected tooth scenario.

Will the oral surgeon be able to check the bone and sinuses for infection? Or do I need to see another doctor for that first? Appreciate any guidance on how to proceed next. Thank for your help. I've made up my mind to cancel the second root canal and get this tooth extracted.