root canal

[Spoof]

I've known for the past 2-3 years that I more than likely need to have 2 root canals done on my two bottom molars.

A good dentist nowadays will tell you that if they haven't bothered you yet, don't mess with them. The reason for a root canal is as mentioned above - infections or pain and those generally show up right away. If it's been a couple years they've 'mummified' for lack of the proper term and are likely to be issue-free.

 

[Chinniechantel]

I agree with looking for a dental school. I did that when I needed an implant because I was just born without one of my eye teeth. It was half price and they were very nice, but it did take a bit longer since they are teaching at the same time. An actual dentist does all the important stuff, but a student will do some little things. I was very happy with the work done, and it is not as bad as you would think, or as bad as you freak yourself out about.

 

[Jenn]

What does the crown do? Or maybe a better question...what is a crown?

Yeah, I don't think many insurances cover much of a root canal.

A crown is either a gold or porcelain (tooth colored) cap that fits over the entire tooth. The tooth gets cut down in size in all dimensions to fit a crown over the top of it. When you hollow out a tooth, it loses its integrity and becomes quite weak. It can crack, crumble apart. It needs a cap to fit over it so you have something that resembles a tooth, functions as a tooth, and holds the remaining true tooth together. People that have really large fillings are usually candidates for future crowns as well. Most insurance groups pay 80% for fillings, and root canals and crowns are done at maybe 50%. Been too long, can't quite remember. I know my personal insurance sucks. But I agree with the others, a dental school has the assistants in their final weeks of training with a certified dentist that volunteers his time. Costs will be cheaper.

 

[Cinder and Me]

A good dentist nowadays will tell you that if they haven't bothered you yet, don't mess with them. The reason for a root canal is as mentioned above - infections or pain and those generally show up right away. If it's been a couple years they've 'mummified' for lack of the proper term and are likely to be issue-free.

Oh they hurt, I can't really bite down on anything hard on those teeth and hot/cold/sugar hurt so bad, it'll stop me in my tracks.

 

[Cinder and Me]

A crown is either a gold or porcelain (tooth colored) cap that fits over the entire tooth. The tooth gets cut down in size in all dimensions to fit a crown over the top of it. When you hollow out a tooth, it loses its integrity and becomes quite weak. It can crack, crumble apart. It needs a cap to fit over it so you have something that resembles a tooth, functions as a tooth, and holds the remaining true tooth together. People that have really large fillings are usually candidates for future crowns as well. Most insurance groups pay 80% for fillings, and root canals and crowns are done at maybe 50%. Been too long, can't quite remember. I know my personal insurance sucks. But I agree with the others, a dental school has the assistants in their final weeks of training with a certified dentist that volunteers his time. Costs will be cheaper.

Perhaps that is my problem. I had gone to a dentist who apparently was very bad, and every single filling he touched failed and caused cavities. The dentist after him said that the fillings were poor work, and now I have cavities that reached so deep that if I feel discomfort I would most likely need a root canal. Well, what-do-ya-know I have had discomfort ever since then, and that's why I'm scared to go to the dentist. Maybe it wouldn't be a root canal, maybe it would be a crown since the fillings he had to put (and fix) reached so deep into the tooth, there isn't much real tooth matter left. Hmmm...

 

[Jenn]

A tooth can hurt for a couple of reasons. If you have a large filling, it leaves less tooth. Does that make sense? The smaller the filling, the more tooth left. The larger the filling, less tooth left. The thinner the tooth walls, the more fragile they can get, and can develop fractures or cracks which can cause sensitivity to pressure or hot or cold. Also, if decay gets too close to the nerve chamber, the center of the tooth, you can get the same sensitivity. You can get the decay removed and a filling in place, but the sensitivity may remain because of its close proximity to the nerve chamber. If the sensitivity persists, that's when your dentist will recommend a root canal to remove the nerves transmitting pain. The last reason a person may need a root canal is because of infection, or an abcess from a dead or dying tooth. One of the reasons why a person needs to go to the dentist regularly is to have teeth checked for any new decay, as well as how any fillings or other restorations are holding up. Older fillings tend to pull away from the tooth, allowing bacteria to get underneath and start a cavity under the filling. Sometimes your dentist can see this visually, sometimes it is with the aid of x-rays, or bitewings. There are really good dentists that make the visit easier. I was an assistant, but still hate the idea of my mouth being worked on. The office I worked at delt with a lot of high fear adults, and we took steps to make each patient feel at ease. We had a lot of compliments. Most adults avoid going to the dentist because of some bad experience when they were kids. Take the time to find a good dentist, it will make all the difference in the world.

 

[staceylwolf]

ok, I'm late seeing this thread and you're probably already at the dentist getting this root canal done. But I wanted to share my experiece for all, just so people know what can go wrong during a root canal.

My dentist did a root canal on me last september. During the procedure, I all of a sudden felt a burning sensation going thru my nose. The dentist had drilled up thru my sinus cavity! He stopped everything right away, flushed it with something and told me he couldn't finish that day and I would have to come back. He gave me some pain pills and said it would hurt for a few days and sent me on my way. When I got home, I bent over to untie my shoes and a clear liquid starting coming out my nose, I called the dentist and asked if I should be worried about this and was told i would be fine. About 5 days later I had to go to my family dr for what felt like the start of a sinus infection, I told him what had happened the week before at the dentist and my dr was shocked that the dentist never put me on any antibiotics. So my dr started antibiotic and said if I wasn't feeling better in a few day I would need to get x-rays done. So a few days later, feeling worse, I went and had x-rays done. As soon as my dr saw the x-rays he sent me that same day to a nose, ear and throat specialist. That dr then sent me for a C-Scan. I was in so much pain, I couldn't sleep, no pain meds would work, I was on antibiotics for 7 weeks straight (5 different kinds). I ended up having to have sinus surgery, in which they had to break my nose to do. After the surgery, the sinus pain was better but then I had the pain of healing from the surgery. I won't go into details, but it's gross! lol. My boyfriend jokes that I had my nose roto-rooted. which is pretty much what it felt like. It's been 9 months since my root canal and I'm still healing from the damage that dentist did to me. Needless to say, he's no longer my dentist.

 

[Cinder and Me]

So SusieJJ, how are you doing? )

 

[Jenn]

Wow Stacey, what a nightmare for you! I worked in dentistry for a few years before I had kids, and a root canal really shouldn't be any kind of ordeal at all for a dentist who knows what he is doing. I'm glad you have a new dentist.