Went to dentist this morning. I've had a lump under my jawbone for several weeks. Been on two rounds antibiotics. It has progressed to a definite absess.
(sp?)

He said he would do a root canal IF that is my choice. But he doesn't recommend it. Says over 75% of time, it temporarily solves the immediate pain issue. But the nerve are dead and it may have infection develop back with no way to get it out. Then tends to mess up the immune system and can travel to any system in the body.

He says with my MS he feels my body is already doing enough fighting without adding another problem for my immune system to try to sort out.

The other alternative is to pull the tooth. But it is under a bridge, so ultimately I would end up with the two back teeth missing, putting a crown on the third one.

I hate this, I have always tried to take such good care of my teeth. I brush almost compulsively. I can't stand the thought of losing these teeth. But I guess that may have to be my choice.

Has anyone dealt with a similar situation or know anything about this. I could use some advice.
Thanks.

I had an abscess earlier this spring. I had a root canal done.

I did have an exacerbation in june (diplopia) but I'm not sure if it's connected to the abscess (which was in April/May) I had a mild UTI in late May/early june that I think was responsible for the diplopia.

The root canal was probably one of my most stressful dental experiences. I have a dental phobia, so I was stressed out everytime they pulled out the syringe of anesthetic and started drilling or shaping things. That said, the pain from the infection was a lot worse than the stress.

I still have pain in that tooth, which is now apparently temperature sensitive, when I eat cold food, like ice cream. I thought the nerves were taken care of, so I dont know if the pain is from one of the teeth on either side of that root canal, or if the dentist missed a nerve when she was doing the root canal.

I had three since being dx with MS. I demanded to have them fixed, and had an oral surgeon do it, instead of the regular dentist. They opened the side of my gum line, and the surgeon removed the tip end of that root. This disconnected it from the blood supply of that tooth, and removed the infected material that couldnt be reached by standard tools. I was told I have very long roots, and the abcess wasnt cleared out because standard tools were not able to reach it.

Long story short. BEST move ever! I got to keep my teeth which are worth their weight in gold to me, and it saves bone, and calcium loss. Its more than just a tooth at stake, its also the bone loss that would occur once the tooth is removed.

I hope you at least seek a second opinion with an oral surgeon to get some ideas from them. Was totally worth the extra effort for me.

Good luck.

I have had more root canals than teeth.

I would get another opinion. It is important to kill the infection, but if it is not done occur the first time, they can open it up again. My dentist usually does a temp filling to start off with anyway.

Maybe this is a special case for some reason, but otherwise I would not be too concerned about having it done.

Cherie