[lorena9]

Hello: I am new here and hope I am doing this right. I have had rheumatoid arthritis for a few years now, and more than the joint pain, is the fatigue and muscle aches which I sometimes feel, that get me down. I have been reading lately at at how antibiotic therapy has worked for some people ( the Road Back Foundation) and in the literature there is mention on how root canals can contribute or even cause RA due to bacteria.
This past summer my dentist drilled next to my root canal and put a crown on the broken tooth (next to the root canal) and I felt symptoms as if i had the flu - again a bit like what i feel on and off, and have been for the last 10 years. I called the dentist and she said there was no relation, and it was coincidental that I suddenly felt ill.I didn't believe that then and especially not now, after reading all these things about bacteria. This makes a lot of sense. Is there a way I can be tested to see if my root canal holds bacteria?? I had it done the first time just about 15 years ago, and it never felt right. My gums were always"itchy" and bit swollen. SO i had it redone five years ago, and remember the surgeon removing a bit of cotton that was left inside> I thought that was the culprit and what might have been causing the discomfort and feeling of it just not being right. But now I realize nothing really has changed. Could i have bacteria there that is making me feel ill, and ultimately contributing to RA? ANd if so, how can i be tested for that?? Many thanks. Lorena

[Bryanna]

Hi Lorena,

YES. Your root canaled tooh is a major source of bacteria. Yes, it can contribute to, and/or exacerbate your RA. Root canaled teeth are chronically infected and inflamed. They are always a source of bacterial infection. I am impressed that the Road Back Foundation has made the link between root canaled teeth and bacteria. That is great news to hear!!!!

Your dentist is not informing you properly when she says the treatment done on the tooth next to the root canaled one has no bearing on the rct tooth. It does not take much to stir up an already inflamed tooth. It's like having a headache but only expecting one small spot on your head to hurt.... totally ridiculous.

The tooth that is root canaled has been infected since <before> the rc was done. A second rc does nothing more than the first rc. The discomfort, the itchy feeling, the inflammation associated with this tooth along with the systemic inflammation is all indicative of a chronic bacterial infection.

I am going to be very truthful with you.... that cotton pellet that was removed from the rc tooth when the rc was done a second time..... may have been saturated with formercresol. Many dentists would saturate a cotton pellet with formercresol in an attempt to kill residual bacteria inside of a tooth. Often this cotton pellet remained in the tooth after it was closed up. Formercresol is formaldehyde. It is highly toxic and once it has come in contact with the tooth it cannot be removed, rinsed out or scraped away from the tooth. The cotton pellet can be removed but the toxin is still present. The only way to get rid of it is to remove the tooth.

Sometimes dentists will put cotton in the large hole inside the tooth where the pulp chamber use to be because after root canal therapy, this hole has to be filled with something. Sometimes the cotton was dry other times it was soaked in formercresol. There was really no way for the dentist who did the second root canal to know if it were dry or not unless it had a distinctive formercresol odor to it.

There is no test to confirm whether or not bacteria from a tooth is causing a systemic affliction. There are some blood and saliva markers that can indicate infection and/or inflammation... but rarely is the oral and systemic connection recognized. This is something that is frequently overlooked by both dentists and physicians.

The one thing to be sure about is that the root canaled tooth does harbor infectious bacteria and is chronically inflamed. In your case it's been that way for 15 yrs or longer. If you believe in the whole body connection then it's not hard to see the correlation.

Here is a chart indicating the oral and systemic connection. It has been utilized in chinese medicine for centuries. Take a look.....
http://www.drwolfe.com/dentistry/tooth_chart

Hope this information is helpful... please keep in touch with us.
Bryanna

Originally Posted by lorena9

Hello: I am new here and hope I am doing this right. I have had rheumatoid arthritis for a few years now, and more than the joint pain, is the fatigue and muscle aches which I sometimes feel, that get me down. I have been reading lately at at how antibiotic therapy has worked for some people ( the Road Back Foundation) and in the literature there is mention on how root canals can contribute or even cause RA due to bacteria.
This past summer my dentist drilled next to my root canal and put a crown on the broken tooth (next to the root canal) and I felt symptoms as if i had the flu - again a bit like what i feel on and off, and have been for the last 10 years. I called the dentist and she said there was no relation, and it was coincidental that I suddenly felt ill.I didn't believe that then and especially not now, after reading all these things about bacteria. This makes a lot of sense. Is there a way I can be tested to see if my root canal holds bacteria?? I had it done the first time just about 15 years ago, and it never felt right. My gums were always"itchy" and bit swollen. SO i had it redone five years ago, and remember the surgeon removing a bit of cotton that was left inside> I thought that was the culprit and what might have been causing the discomfort and feeling of it just not being right. But now I realize nothing really has changed. Could i have bacteria there that is making me feel ill, and ultimately contributing to RA? ANd if so, how can i be tested for that?? Many thanks. Lorena

[lorena9]

Thank you so much Bryanna for your response. I have been feeling so unwell, joint pain and achy- flu like symptoms. It seems that the thing to do as you said is to remove the root canal and tooth.SO much money spent of doing it twice too!!
I assume that i need to do this with a biological dentist, and would i be able to replace the tooth with something else that would be safe and not just leave a gap in my mouth?
Thanks again
Lorena

[Bryanna]

Lorena,

Yes, I would agree to see a Biological dentist or one that belongs to the IAOMT organization if possible.

As far as replacing it.... that depends on the health of the bone. Root canaled teeth can leave a nasty necrotic mess behind and it can be difficult to cure completely. The longer the tooth is present, the deeper the necrosis. I know, this is crappy to hear. I just wish dentists would tell their patients the truth about root canal therapy (just as I do here) so that the patient knows what they are "paying for".

I hope you can get this taken care of soon and be on the mend to better health!

Keep us posted...
Bryanna

Originally Posted by lorena9

Thank you so much Bryanna for your response. I have been feeling so unwell, joint pain and achy- flu like symptoms. It seems that the thing to do as you said is to remove the root canal and tooth.SO much money spent of doing it twice too!!
I assume that i need to do this with a biological dentist, and would i be able to replace the tooth with something else that would be safe and not just leave a gap in my mouth?
Thanks again
Lorena