Root canal
 

Don't know if this x-ray will come out.
A relative was just told she needs a root canal of tooth #30.
I don't trust dentists or their off shoot "professionals."
Bryanna, If you can see the image I just tried to down load, can you tell me if this tooth is indeed "in trouble?"
The consultation is this morning. I just hope he doesn't talk her into doing it right away.
BTW, she had another consultation and was told the cost would be close to $1000 on top of her dental insurance.
She is not particularly interested in removal or implant.
I'm at a loss right this second...come to think of it...I think I'm going to call her right now and tell her to listen to the endo. but don't do a thing. This endo. is on her dental plan and "allegedly" the cost is less. I'm just very sad about the entire ordeal. I spoke to her dentist and he said it was "too far gone" for a filling. So, how does it look to you?
Thank you.

Hi Vowel lady,

This xray is a little light but it appears that teeth #30 and 31 both have large areas of decay. Number #30 appears to have decay to the right of the restoration which looks like it has gone underneath the restoration as well and possibly into the pulp chamber. Tooth #31 has a large area of decay that has gone into the pulp chamber.

If the clinical pathology is the same as it appears on this film then her options for both of these teeth would be root canal or extraction.

I'm sorry to deliver that news.... I wish she would think twice about her options before making a decision.

Bryanna

Many many thanks Bryanna.
She is leaning toward the root canal.
I find it weird that neither the dentist nor the endo mentioned 31.
(31!!!!!! :eek::thud:)
Why the hxxxx didn't the dentist or the endo mention 31? (Believe me I am NOT questioning you, I am questioning THEM...and that is not a rhetorical question...why wouldn't they mention it?)
Also, does 31 have ANY hope AT ALL with a filing or maybe a filing and bonding or something?
I don't get it. Maybe if they leave it alone it will be a big money maker or something.
Just don't trust these guys.

:(

Very much appreciate your input even though the news is :(

Hi Vowel Lady,

Well the xray is gone now so I cannot take another look. But from what I recall, #31 appeared to have a large deep area of decay on the mesial (this surface of tooth is in between 30 and 31) and the occlusal (biting surface) portion of the tooth. It could also be a large chip off of the tooth but it looks too similar to the decay on #31. So I'm leaning towards decay.

The problem with deep decay in a tooth is that when it is all removed, the dentist has to clean beyond the decay to remove any residual bacteria. So if the pulp wasn't exposed from the decay, it is often exposed during the rest of the removal. Depending on the amount of exposure, sometimes a medicated filling can be put in to try and heal it. But the area has to be really small for that treatment to be effective. The longevity of medicated fillings varies.

If your relative is not an established patient of the dentist or she is but she rarely goes to him or has preventive dental care, and she went in because the tooth was bothering her, he may have just focused on that tooth assuming she didn't want to know about the other one. I know, that is stupid, but it happens all the time :/ The endodontist may have figured the same thing... again :/

Periodic xrays called bite wings would have detected both of these problems at the onset of the decay. That is why I assume she either avoids seeing the dentist or she avoids having xrays....or both.

Wish she was more open to her alternatives. But she has to decide what she thinks is best for her.

Bryanna

Vowel lady,

where did you that you decided not to have a root canal because they use bleach to disinfect the canals? someone responded that if not bleach, they can use formocresol or something else. I tried to respond but couldn't get logged in to say NEVER USE FORMOCRESOL. I can't find it now. Formocresol has up to 39% formaldehyde. The crap that they used on me had 6.5% and left me damaged for life. When they clean out the canals, there is a bleeding wound and that formaldehyde gets into the blood system which is why there is a theory that these root canals can cause systemic damage to a whole array of organs. Pediatric dentists use formocresol on baby teeth. If it had been used on my kid and I found out about it....I'd have gone ballistic whether there was immediate damage or not. What the hell are these dentists thinking?

BTW, the use of bleach is not a problem unless you are allergic to it. They use household bleach and have for decades with little harm. It beats the heck out of some of the other stuff is used today. I had a bad mammogram come back and I told the oncologist that if it was cancer, that I had some formaldehyde crap that could be injected into the tumor to embalm/kill it (i.e. the Sargenti Paste they put into my mouth). The doctor said he couldn't use it because it is more dangerous than the chemo drugs!!! AND OUR DENTAL INDUSTRY KNOWS ABOUT THESE FORMALDEHYDE PRODUCTS AND DOES ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO PROTECT US IGNORANT PATIENTS. I don't happen to remember watching 60 minutes, GMA and Dateline in the mid-90s when they did stories on sargenti paste and how bad it was. Even if I did see them, I have long since forgotten about them. SHAME on our dental industry.

Pained,

Just to clarify as you may be referring to me.... I had mentioned formocresol being used during a root canal procedure in a previous post to someone who was inquiring about the medicament's used to disinfect the interior of the large canals. I offered that for informative purposes only, not because I would ever condone it's usage.

It is important to know that any chemical medicament used to disinfect the interior of the tooth has one purpose, to kill bacteria. Chemicals do not differentiate between infectious or protective bacteria. Their sole purpose is to kill whatever bacteria or tissue is in it's path basically rendering no boundaries. In doing so, the chemical dissolves the protective cell membrane that lines the interior walls of the tooth that protect it from bacteria getting in or out of the tooth. Once this membrane is destroyed, the chemical is then able to penetrate the tooth and travel elsewhere. No one can predict the long term affects of these chemicals leaching out into the jaw bone or beyond.

The subject of chemical disinfectants used in endodontics are just one of the many complications and risks of root canal therapy that are not openly discussed between a dentist and their patent and unfortunately the literature on this not written in layman's terms and therefore usually only privy to the dental community.

As a dental patient, I personally would want to know this information prior to giving any consent to perform this procedure. Of course, not everyone would give a second thought to it, but I know I would. Is this something that would be important for you to know or would you rather not know?

Bryanna