Here are three pictures of an extracted tooth #7 (upper right lateral which is the second tooth from the front) that had a crown, root canal treatment and a post.

The first picture shows the crown/cap still attached to the tooth. A blackened root which indicates death and necrosis of the tooth. A definitive vertical fracture that was most likely caused by the placement of the post.

The second picture shows the side view depicting the "thin shell" of a tooth that was left after the root canal and post were done. Look closely at the angle of the post.... it literally perforated the back portion near the end of the root under the gumline when it was put in.

The third picture shows the open back portion of the tooth detailing the crooked placement of the large post. The chalky white clump of material near the crown margin is cement and filling material. The brown color stuff within the interior of the tooth and behind the post is dead tissue mixed with root canal filling material.

This patient had no pain or swelling with this tooth. Her xray showed a radiolucent (black) area of infection at the apex (end) of the root.

Just wanted to give everyone a visual of what is typically found inside and outside of a root canaled tooth with a post in it.

Feedback is welcome......!

Bryanna

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Oh geez, Bryanna, this is scary stuff. I keep staring at these pictures, and the thought of that blackened root and tooth in a mouth/jaw/body is not a pleasant one.

What was the purpose of the post in the tooth? (Excuse my ignorance. I've had no dental work except wisdom tooth extractions.) Is there a chance the post shifted - or is this an example of extremely lousy dental work? I'm surprised it didn't cause immediate problems that the patient felt. Do you know how much time elapsed between cap, root canal and post?

Thanks,
Dana

Hi Dana,

Yes, it is scary stuff because as you can see, it certainly doesn't look very healthy, does it?

Root canals are a common procedure and in most cases the patient is not properly informed of what happens to their tooth once it's been root canaled. Besides that, an actual photo is the best description. All root canaled teeth turn black from being deprived of blood. The longer the tooth is kept in the mouth, the blacker it becomes.

The purpose of placing the post is to give the non vital, fragile tooth some retention to hold the crown on. The irony is that drilling a post into a fragile tooth only weakens the tooth more. The end result is either a fracture in the tooth and/ or eventually the tooth breaks off at the gumline.

No, the post did not shift, that's the angle it was put in. This is a typical situation because it's impossible to see how far the post is going in when placing it. Sometimes the tooth is in such poor condition that the post actually splits the tooth in half.

Sometimes there are physical symptoms of pain or just something doesn't feel right after the post is placed. But other times the only symptom is when the infection shows itself as a fistula (a bump on the gum above/below a tooth) and/or it's picked up on an xray.

This patient had a large deep cavity and a filling placed. About 6 months later a radiolucent (black) area was seen on an xray indicating an infection. She had a root canal done and because the tooth was badly broken down from the original decay and in a fragile condition, a post and crown were done. She continued to have a radiolucent (black) area above the apex (root) of her tooth on her xrays for a little over 2 years. Finally, the tooth began to exude pus from beneath the gum and get loose, so the dentist finally said this should come out.

The intention of this thread is to inform people...... so they have a clearer idea of what is being done.

Bryanna

Hi Bryanna,

What was done after extraction? did she get an implant.cture?

Typically how long does a tooth with RCT lasts without a problem?
And how much longer a post op increases the life of the tooth?
One more questions, can a crown replaced without damaging the tooth structure?

Regards,
Kanna

Kanna,

This patient wore a removable partial for several months and then had a bridge made to replace the tooth.

Root canaled teeth have problems right from the start. They are chronically infected and cause a growth of infectious bacteria in the jawbone. Sometimes the obvious symptoms of the infection are not apparent until months or years after the root canal is done. Most of the time, they are ignored until there is pain, swelling, or the tooth becomes loose.

A post in a tooth actually weakens the tooth, causes additional inflammation and bacteria to grown and ultimately shortens the lifespan of the tooth.

When replacing a crown, some of the tooth is cut away to accommodate the new crown. This causes additional weakness in an already fragile tooth.

Bryanna

A few years ago I opted for tooth extractions as apposed to root canals. My dentist did not recommend rc. He said you end up losing the tooth usually. so I am missing my back 3 teeth on one side.

Then last year I needed 2 root canals on the other side. i opted for the root canals trying to SAVE the teeth. I really don't want to lose teeth on the other side....I can only chew on one side as it was.

So I got the root canals, then crowns. So far, so good. I chew gingerly and am keeping my fingers crossed. I hope they last longer than it is taking me to pay them off!!!

Getting old really sucks sometimes!!!

I had my 3 root canal teeth out last week. Honestly they were black. The roots were totally black. No wonder I am always ill with those dead things in my mouth. I developed multiple sclerosis within a week of having them done and now 20 years on I also have spondylitis in my spine and crumbling vertebrae. After reading about root canals I think thats what caused it.

Hi Riven,

Thanks for sharing your story with us. I am sorry you have to deal with feeling ill all of the time. The root canaled teeth may not have caused your MS, but they certainly contributed to the progression of it. Any long standing infection in the jawbone will weaken the immune system creating a systemic vulnerability to all sorts of health problems. I am very glad that you decided to remove those teeth.... I'm sure your immune system is too.

I hope you find some improvement in your health.... even if just a little bit.
Thanks again for sharing...

Bryanna

Hi im new to this site and would really love some advice, about 8 years ago two of my front teeth were decayed so when i finally plucked up the courage to go to the dentist i had them filed down to little pegs and had crowns put on i was in severe pain afterwards and never went back so i had pain on and off over the years then it got worse so i found a new dentist about 3 years ago he did root canal on the two teeth but afterwards the pain was unbearable so i kept going back and he redid the root canals again and was very rough and not very understanding he said i cant have pain because the nerve was removed the pain settled a bit so my new crowns were put on then again i never went back so suffered on and off for a year then i got a new dentist who i like and was very understanding he took xrays which showed that only half of the nerves had been removed so he redid the root canals through the back of the crowns afterwards i was alot better but one of the tooth my big front one still hurt on and off mildly and never felt normal so i just carried on but it started to hurt again more frequent so i had the root canal redone again in august and a few days after it started throbbing very bad and i felt very unwell i had a fever and pain in my face and had bad migraines which i have never had in my life i got antibiotics off the doctor which helped but when id finished them i felt ill again i went back to the dentist who gave me more antibiotics and said get some blood tests done off the doctor because he didnt think my tooth was the problem which i did and they didnt show anything wrong anyway i did start to feel better but my tooth still hurt so my dentist has referred me for an apicoectomy i had my consultation a week ago and he said that the root canal looks fine so there must be a chronic infection at the tip of the root he said i have an 80 per cent chance of saving the tooth which could last 8-10 years but he cant say for sure he will definitely remove all of the infection i couldnt decide what to do so have 2 weeks to decide then if i say yes an 8 week wait for the surgery at the moment my tooth has constant dull ache sometimes throbs it hurts to tap it smells foul around it and i have a foul taste on and off i believe from the tooth and also since the root canal i have mild face ache next to my nose on and off, if i have the tooth pulled i will have to wear a partial denture for 3 months then will get a maryland bridge i just dont know what to do try and save or pull all my family have said pull and im sure are fed up of me going on about it but im only 28 and scared of wearing a denture and then a bridge that could keep falling out if it wasnt my front tooth i would have had it pulled years ago also if its pulled would the infection stay in my mouth or would it come out with the tooth? any advice would be great i just feel depressed and worn down with the whole thing