[LoriBell]

I had a root canal done and my general dentist informed my when he did the build up for the crown that the material used in the root came out the bottom and might cause an infection. This might require surgery to remove the extra material. Has this happened to anyone else?

[Abbie]

Hello LoriBell and WELCOME to NeuroTalk!

Here is a link that may be of help to you...

Dentistry & Dental Issues
http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/forum89.html

Please feel free to roam around all of the forums and join in any where.

If you have any questions or need any assistance please do not hesitate to ask. Someone will always be around shortly to help in any way that we are able.

I look forward to seeing you around the board.

Abbie

[Darlene]

LoriBell,

Happy to see you have come to be with us. As you can see we have a great number and caring fellow members here, just let us know how we can assist, you will see we are are supportive and relaxing place. Our shoulders are here for support in many ways.

Looks like Abbie has gotten you started. Again welcome, looking forward to seeing you around. Happy Holidays to you and your family. My thoughts and prayers are with you.

Darlene

[Rrae]

It's great to have you here at NT!

The Dental forum that Abbie pointed you to is fantastic.
I've learned more from that forum than I have from my own dentist!

I hope you can get your tooth taken care of with minimal invasive procedure.

Caring,
Rae

Hi, LoriBell:

I had a similar problem with the second tooth of my upper jaw, second tooth starting from the right side of my upper jaw. A root canal was done on this tooth and later, as my dentist was doing the crown to protect this tooth, the tooth on which the root canal was done broke off in several pieces. He did not tell me why this occurred despite my asking again and again. All he did was prescribe some antibiotic tablets for me. After his refusing to give me explanations on why this happened, I decided to change dentist. The new dentist told me the first dentist had done such a poor job that he (the new dentist) had no other choice than to remove the remains of this tooth. Result: I have NO tooth there anymore. Other result: I need a bridge (a new tooth to replace the missing one, with a crown to protect it, as well as two crowns to protect the two teeth next to the missing one). Unfortunately, I cannot afford this work (at least U.S. $ 3,000, if not more). I hope all will go well for you and your problem will be solved without much damage to your tooth.

[Bryanna]

Hi Lori Bell,

Welcome to Neurotalk!

I am in the dental field for many years as a chairside assistant. Most of my posts are on the dental forum ... if you are interested in seeing some of the conversations there.

Just to clarify what your dentist was trying to inform you of and to also inform you of the risks of what has occured....

A build up on a tooth is made from a composite material that is put on in layers on top of the piece of tooth that is sticking out of the gum. When it's done, it resembles the shape of a small tooth. This material does not go into the roots at all. The material he was referring to has to do with the root canal procedure and it is one of two materials..... #1) It could be the cement that was injected into the large canals inside of the roots and/or.... #2)It could be the filling material called gutta percha that is used to fill the large canals inside of the roots.

Here's what happens...
During the root canal procedure, the instruments called files/reamers are repetitively pushed in/out of the inside of the roots in an attempt to crush and remove the nerves located there. Sometimes a rotary file is used which serves the same purpose. During aggressive use of the files, or when a tooth is infected, it is easy to perforate the end of the root. Then when the cement and/or the gutta percha is pushed into these canals it is often pushed through this perforation into the jawbone. It can easily be seen on an xray.

The surgery he is talking about to remove the material in the bone is called an Apicoectomy. This procedure is rarely done anymore because it has NO positive effect on the tooth and in fact it can compromise the bone even further leaving you with more infection and because this procedure can irritate bundles of nerves within the bone it can cause other areas of referred pain. During this procedure, a drill is used to cut a window into the bone below the root of the tooth. Files (similar to root canal ones) are used to scrap out that material that was overshot through the root into the bone. The hole is patched up with a mercury filling or some similar type of material and the tissue is sutured closed.

When he mentioned a surgery might be needed he was forewarning you that this tooth is now compromised in spite of putting on the crown which only covers the top portion of the tooth above the gumline. This means that eventually this tooth may show signs of abcess, pain, mobility, deep pocketing in between the teeth on either side, jaw pain....... etc. He probably mentioned it in a casual manner, but in reality, this is not a good scenerio and the life expectancy of this tooth is guarded.

A lot of information to be given.... but it's only fair that you are properly informed of what has occurred because you do have the option at this point to forgo the crown and have the tooth extracted. This would avoid a costly problem in the future.

Hope you can speak with your dentist about your options and make your decision based on what you feel is in your best interest.

Bryanna

Originally Posted by LoriBell

I had a root canal done and my general dentist informed my when he did the build up for the crown that the material used in the root came out the bottom and might cause an infection. This might require surgery to remove the extra material. Has this happened to anyone else?

[Bryanna]

Hi Kitty,

So sorry you encountered this problem. It is a common one but a costly one, that's for sure.

It is typical for a root canaled tooth to break into pieces when it is drilled on because the root canal procedure severs the blood vessel that supplies nutrition to that tooth. So the tooth becomes very brittle and weak.

Is there any way your new dentist could work with you on the cost of the bridge? Perhaps he offers a financial plan through a company called Care Credit or Capitol One? Both of these companies will allow you to borrow money .... interest free.... for 12-18 months. Many healthcare offices offer these options through one of these companies. Just thought it was worth mentioning to you.

Take care,
Bryanna

Originally Posted by kittycapucine1974

Hi, LoriBell:

I had a similar problem with the second tooth of my upper jaw, second tooth starting from the right side of my upper jaw. A root canal was done on this tooth and later, as my dentist was doing the crown to protect this tooth, the tooth on which the root canal was done broke off in several pieces. He did not tell me why this occurred despite my asking again and again. All he did was prescribe some antibiotic tablets for me. After his refusing to give me explanations on why this happened, I decided to change dentist. The new dentist told me the first dentist had done such a poor job that he (the new dentist) had no other choice than to remove the remains of this tooth. Result: I have NO tooth there anymore. Other result: I need a bridge (a new tooth to replace the missing one, with a crown to protect it, as well as two crowns to protect the two teeth next to the missing one). Unfortunately, I cannot afford this work (at least U.S. $ 3,000, if not more). I hope all will go well for you and your problem will be solved without much damage to your tooth.

Hi, Bryanna:

You are right; it is a costly, very costly problem because, not long after the dentist has repaired my tooth, it breaks again, even though I did not bite on hard food. I cannot afford to have this tooth, which is broken at the present time and has been broken for several months, repaired every time it breaks. I just wonder why dentists do not do a better job, by using fillings that do not break so easily and last years. When I was a child decades ago (I am now 37 years old), the tooth fillings lasted years and did not break easily. Now, all this has changed. Is it because dentists want us to come back again and again to have our tooth repaired so they earn more money than if we had come only one time because they did a good-quality tooth filling? It is the same thing with cars, for example. If car manufacturers make good-quality cars that last years, clients will not come back and buy a new car if their older car still works well. If car manufacturers, right from the beginning, made bad- or poor-quality cars that do not last long, clients will have to come back again and again to have their car repaired whenever it does not work and they will end up having to buy a new car.

Quote: "It is typical for a root canaled tooth to break into pieces when it is drilled on because the root canal procedure severs the blood vessel that supplies nutrition to that tooth. So the tooth becomes very brittle and weak."

I really did not know that. Thanks a lot for letting me know.

Quote: "Is there any way your new dentist could work with you on the cost of the bridge?"

My dentist agrees to do a credit for the bridge, but I do not see how a bridge could prevent fragile teeth from breaking again and again. Besides that, I only earn the minimum monthly wage (about U.S. $ 1,300). Every month, I spend at least U.S. $ 300 for my medications; I also have to count the primary care doctor's fees and the specialists fees, without forgetting the physical therapists fees, as well as the food, transportation, gas, electricity, water, rent... The minimum wage is not enough for me to live. Besides that, because of the financial crisis, I could lose my job tomorrow, who knows!?!?

Thanks for all your information.

[ginnie]

I have a similar problem. Had two teeth removed, now I need a bridge. The tooth in front and in back need to be crowned, then the bridge put in etc. I can't afford it eithor! Quoted me $4,000. I am on medicare/medicaid. I think it a shame dental issues are so expensive it puts good care out of the reach of many people. Sorry you are going through this too. My empty space shows when I smile, and it makes me feel bad I can't do much about it. The teeth were pulled because I could not afford the gum surgery and three new crowns to the tune of $5,000. I am despondent over the whole mess. Sorry you are going through the money issues too. ginnie

Hi, ginnie:

The medical insurance I have is CPS (Caisse de Prévoyance Sociale), the French Polynesian public health system. It does not cover crowns or bridges, except for the people who work there, who are already over-privileged with their high salaries, including the cleaning people . The other people, including foreigners, who are lucky enough to be in France, can go to dentists' schools (the waiting list is extremely long) and have crowns and/or bridges done for a much cheaper price. Unfortunately, this is not where I am. So I have to live with this broken tooth, until other teeth, then other teeth, decide to break also. Than I can only eat baby foods or soft foods like mashed potatoes and yogurt, for example.

Quote: "I think it a shame dental issues are so expensive it puts good care out of the reach of many people."

This is even worse during celebrations like Birthdays, Father's or Mother's Days, Christmas Day, New Year's Eve Day, and January 1st celebrations. During these celebrations, the members of my family (parents, brother, sister-in-law, uncles, aunts, cousins, their husbands or wives, etc.) look at me with a murderous look in their eyes if I cannot afford to offer them an expensive gift or if they get a cheap gift. These members of my family are satisfied only when they get expensive gifts. The more expensive the gift a person offers, the more appreciated this person is. If some member in my family is poor (like me), this person will just have to accept being unappreciated because she is poor.

Quote: "The teeth were pulled because I could not afford the gum surgery and three new crowns to the tune of $5,000."

I hope that we and all the other persons who need it get the money we need. In my case, no one seems to understand I have a serious disease (generalized internal chronic RSD), whose treatment (maybe a cure) in Germany costs at least U.S. $ 50,000, not including treatments that have to be done in case of complications caused by this treatment, which is the inpatient RSD Ketamine Coma Procedure.