hello i,m new on this forum bur have introduced on newcomers page. I,m off to the dentist tommorow again after being in pain for 3 and half weeks (1 week was pain after broken tooth filling) and 2 and half weeks after 1st part of root canal. I, m going to ask him for x ray as other teeth on my left upper side are now hurting (in fact they have hurt since I had the filling, it feels like my teeth have moved and are being pushed together very tightly, could the first dentist who did the filling have made the tooth bigger after it broke, could that cause problems ?.) I went to a different dentists for the root canal treatment a practice which has a specialist endodontist. Anyway I,ve had the worst headache and vomited this morning. I was wondering if the pain is just as bad tommorow I,m going to get him to look at my 16 year old root canal aswell which is two teeth away and I am thinking about getting him to pull the tooth, do I need to go to a specialist to have the tooth removed is there some certain qualification I am looking for in a dentist as I have read some horrible stories on here about infection not being fully excavated when teeth are pulled. thanks for reading x

Hi sweethearting,

You would need to see an oral surgeon for the removal of the tooth/teeth. The tightness that you feel could be inflammation form infection. Root canals cannot cure the infection inside of a tooth because it is impossible to reach the countless tiny canals that have infected nerve material inside of them. These tiny canals are called accessory canals or dentin tubules. So both of these teeth, the broken one with the started root canal and the one with the old root canal treatment are infected and will continue to be infected irrelevant of how well the root canal procedure is done. There is no such thing as a "specialist" Endodontist. These dentists only perform root canal therapy and nothing makes one more special over another.

Your physical symptoms could be related to the inflammation and infection. Imagine a splinter in your finger that has been festering for months or years...... picture what that area of your finger would look and feel like. Imagine the pain from that splinter radiating into your hand and beyond. That is the same principal as an infected tooth. The only way to cure the infection in your finger and the radiating pain would be to remove the splinter because that is the source of your infection. The same holds true with our teeth.... the only way to remove the source of the infection is to remove the tooth/teeth.

I know this is a scary time for you.... and you feel so crummy on top of it. I've given you the information you need to understand the infection process. Go with your instincts on this... don't let any dentist convince you of anything you do not feel comfortable with. Ask your general dentist what your replacement options would be if you chose to have these teeth out.

Keep us posted ok....
Bryanna

Thank you for your wisdom Bryanna, I will let you know how it goes tommorow but you just know when you say extraction they look at you as if your crazy. When I,ve read posts on here there seems to be alot of problems with extractions do you ever hear of the sucess stories reguarding extracted RTs and peoples general health becoming much better?
Many thanks Deb

Hi Deb,

Just some fyi in case you didn't already know ... I am in the dental field for 30+ years so I have helped cared for thousands of patients.

There risks with every dental procedure. However, when it comes to oral infection it needs to be tended to sooner than later because the systemic consequences can be life changing.

The patient is in control of their decisions regarding their dental treatment. If you state you do not want to retain an infected tooth because you are concerned about the systemic consequences, they cannot argue with you about removing it. ALL dentists know the facts about the shortcomings of root canal therapy. ALL dentists know once a tooth is infected it remains that way. ALL dentists have been taught that oral infection whether it be from an infected tooth or periodontal disease has systemic risks. Many of them just routinely take the risk and perform the root canal without giving too much thought because they feel that is what the patient wants and the dentist knows sooner or later this tooth will be removed and replaced by.... something.

Let us know how it goes today....
Bryanna

hello Bryanna, sorry for not getting back sooner but not been very good.
thought I'd update you on the situation. there has been bit of a complication. When I had the white composite filling done before the root canal(this white filling previously had amalgam in it) that is when the pain and feeling ill started. Obviously had root canal done and no better, some of my symptoms were getting worse ie palpitations and nausea, headaches it felt like an adrenaline rush told this to the 2nd dentist and he has refered me to the local dental hospital (Charles Clifford itd called) in sheffield as he says if there is an allergic reaction going on we need to find out what further products he can use even if its a false tooth with palate. So I left his office and he said if it gets worse go down to the dental hospital as an emergency .
Anyway I asked him if there was composite filling still on the tooth and he said yes the 1st dentist had built the tooth back up on the outside. So last night I,m trying to scratch the filling away from the gum line and I felt different, better. So this moring I went to the 1st dentist explained the situation and asked him for my dental records to take to the hospital and also asked him to take the remaining white filling off the tooth which he did. As soon as he had done that I could feel my body relaxing the palpitations had gone and the pressure in my eye dissapeared, also the headache felt better but it it is still there. At least I feel I am back on planet earth again and the confusion is definetly better. I do have allergic reactions, I cannot wear false nails as my eyes swell up dreadfully but its was the same feeling inside but there was no visable swelling apart from the swollen gums. Hopefully my body can calm down a bit so I can get tests done for future product and decide about the root canals. As I said the 1st root canal done 16 years ago I belive has affected my health.
I think what you do for people on this site is amazing when they are most in need of help, you are there. Thank you