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Help with post dental work pain (13 months)
I went to the dentist in Feb. 2009. He diagnosed my 2nd molar as "leaking" and proceeded to replace the filling. My bite has not been the same since. My chiropractor said I have Temporomandibular Joint Disorder (TMD). Then swelling started in the lower jawline (R side). Dentist said #2 upper molar couldn't make lower jaw swell. After poking around, he said #29 lower bicuspid failed the cold test and should have a root canal. As it turned out, I was given 3 root canals on the right side; #2 upper molar, #29 lower bicuspid and #30 lower molar. The pain and the throbbing has NEVER stopped and no one can tell me why. If the nerve is dead, why does the pain persist in all 3 teeth? I have been chewing whatever I can eat on the left side for a year now. I wound up with a white coated tongue that burns as well as my palate. I have unbelievable facial pain, flushed and puffy cheeks that throb and also burn. The swelling is still in the right jaw line (even after 3 rounds of antibiotics). All these painful symptoms are daily occurrence and yet, no one can give me a definite answer and solution. I had 3 MRI's and they revealed nothing out of the ordinary. I have tried acupuncture, cold laser therapy, and physical therapy. I have had blood tests (normal) and eventually chose to have my #30 lower molar extracted because it seemed to hurt the most out of the 3 teeth. Now the 2 remaining hurt just as bad and the extraction left me with a numbing feeling along my gum line, swelling and a slight lisp after I talk for a short time. I am in my 13th month of pain. Does anyone have any suggestion?
I have been dealing with face pain for over a year now due to a bad root canal that the dentist messed up. Long story short I had the tooth taking out and have had nothing but problems since so I feel you pain. I am not sure what to tell you but I hope you can find a dr that can see why you are having so many problems. I know when my husband had a root canal he had a xray a few years later and the new denist asked him why the old one did only have a root canal. So things can happen and it really ***** that we have to deal with the pain because of it. I hope you find your answers soon.
Jamie
Jamie
Hi....This might help..........
Pain after root canals, or between visits falls into four distinct categories and is treated differently depending upon which category it falls into.
Ghost pains happen after an amputation. In the case of someone who has recently had an arm amputated, he may experience pain in his fingers, even though the fingers are no longer there. These are caused by the brain's inability to acknowledge that the fingers are missing, and the pain results from the memory patterns still in place in the neural circuitry from the "stump", to the place in the brain where the pain was originally experienced. In the case of a root canal, the nerve inside the tooth is amputated. The patient may therefore experience ghost pain in the tooth for the same reason that the amputee experiences pain in his fingers. This type of pain may be sharp and shooting pain in the tooth, or a dull ache. These symptoms generally go away on their own and are either not treated, or are treated with a temporary course of Tylenol, Ibuprophen or another light analgesic.
Gas pressure buildup happens between visits after the nerve has been removed from the tooth, but before the canals and chamber are filled with gutta percha. The patient usually goes home after the first visit with an "empty" tooth. The canals and chamber are filed with dead air, and the access hole is closed with a temporary filling. Since air can expand or contract in an enclosed space (like inside the tooth) depending on the barometric pressure, (or the temperature,) the change in volume of the air can place pressure on the live tissues beyond the apex (root tip) in the bone. This is the reason that a tooth in this condition can cause pain when the patient flies in an airplane (low cabin pressure), or on a rainy day (low barometric pressure), or when he drinks hot or cold fluids (air expands and contracts depending on the temperature). This type of pain is generally ignored, or treated with mild analgesics since the pressure generally subsides by itself in a day or so. Upon occasion, the pain persists and the tooth becomes painful to touch for more than a day. In this case, simply removing the temporary filling from the access hole in the top of the tooth will relieve the pain immediately. NO Shot! Just relief!. If the tooth is dry inside, the filling can be replaced after the pressure is relieved.
A Periapical abscess is an actual buildup of fluid in the bone at the tip of the root. This fluid may be sterile (germ free) or it may be the result of an infection due to germs that were introduced beyond the tip of the root during the endodontic procedure. This is a common problem during endodontic therapy. Infection is generally due to the fact that the tooth was infected before the treatment was started. Sometimes, a "sterile abscess" happens because a small amount of the irrigation fluid that is used to clean and sterilize the canals may be expressed beyond the tip of the root during the filing and irrigation procedure explained above. Both types of abscesses manifest as pain to pressure on the tooth. Sometimes painful swelling of the jaw around the tooth may also be present. Generally, the pain is easily relieved by removing the temporary filling in the access hole at the top of the tooth to allow for the fluid to drain. Some dentists may allow the hole to remain open for several days during which the patient is treated with penicillin or another antibiotic. After the swelling and drainage are gone the canals and chamber are cleaned and disinfected and a new temporary filling is placed over the access. Sometimes this procedure must be repeated several times before the root canal can be finished. Other dentists will allow drainage for only 30 or 40 minutes before again drying and closing the tooth.
Hyperocclusion is another term for grinding and clenching your teeth. It is the prime cause of TMJ disorders and is responsible for a great deal of dental misery including generalized hypersensitivity of the teeth to cold. One of the first things a dentist does when performing endodontic treatment on any tooth is to "reduce the occlusion" on the tooth, which means to grind the tooth down so that it does not make contact with the opposing teeth. If he fails to do this, the prognosis for the root canal is very poor indeed.
Pain after root canals, or between visits falls into four distinct categories and is treated differently depending upon which category it falls into.
Ghost pains happen after an amputation. In the case of someone who has recently had an arm amputated, he may experience pain in his fingers, even though the fingers are no longer there. These are caused by the brain's inability to acknowledge that the fingers are missing, and the pain results from the memory patterns still in place in the neural circuitry from the "stump", to the place in the brain where the pain was originally experienced. In the case of a root canal, the nerve inside the tooth is amputated. The patient may therefore experience ghost pain in the tooth for the same reason that the amputee experiences pain in his fingers. This type of pain may be sharp and shooting pain in the tooth, or a dull ache. These symptoms generally go away on their own and are either not treated, or are treated with a temporary course of Tylenol, Ibuprophen or another light analgesic.
Gas pressure buildup happens between visits after the nerve has been removed from the tooth, but before the canals and chamber are filled with gutta percha. The patient usually goes home after the first visit with an "empty" tooth. The canals and chamber are filed with dead air, and the access hole is closed with a temporary filling. Since air can expand or contract in an enclosed space (like inside the tooth) depending on the barometric pressure, (or the temperature,) the change in volume of the air can place pressure on the live tissues beyond the apex (root tip) in the bone. This is the reason that a tooth in this condition can cause pain when the patient flies in an airplane (low cabin pressure), or on a rainy day (low barometric pressure), or when he drinks hot or cold fluids (air expands and contracts depending on the temperature). This type of pain is generally ignored, or treated with mild analgesics since the pressure generally subsides by itself in a day or so. Upon occasion, the pain persists and the tooth becomes painful to touch for more than a day. In this case, simply removing the temporary filling from the access hole in the top of the tooth will relieve the pain immediately. NO Shot! Just relief!. If the tooth is dry inside, the filling can be replaced after the pressure is relieved.
A Periapical abscess is an actual buildup of fluid in the bone at the tip of the root. This fluid may be sterile (germ free) or it may be the result of an infection due to germs that were introduced beyond the tip of the root during the endodontic procedure. This is a common problem during endodontic therapy. Infection is generally due to the fact that the tooth was infected before the treatment was started. Sometimes, a "sterile abscess" happens because a small amount of the irrigation fluid that is used to clean and sterilize the canals may be expressed beyond the tip of the root during the filing and irrigation procedure explained above. Both types of abscesses manifest as pain to pressure on the tooth. Sometimes painful swelling of the jaw around the tooth may also be present. Generally, the pain is easily relieved by removing the temporary filling in the access hole at the top of the tooth to allow for the fluid to drain. Some dentists may allow the hole to remain open for several days during which the patient is treated with penicillin or another antibiotic. After the swelling and drainage are gone the canals and chamber are cleaned and disinfected and a new temporary filling is placed over the access. Sometimes this procedure must be repeated several times before the root canal can be finished. Other dentists will allow drainage for only 30 or 40 minutes before again drying and closing the tooth.
Hyperocclusion is another term for grinding and clenching your teeth. It is the prime cause of TMJ disorders and is responsible for a great deal of dental misery including generalized hypersensitivity of the teeth to cold. One of the first things a dentist does when performing endodontic treatment on any tooth is to "reduce the occlusion" on the tooth, which means to grind the tooth down so that it does not make contact with the opposing teeth. If he fails to do this, the prognosis for the root canal is very poor indeed.
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