Question for any of you nice dentists out there

[Mad Dog]

Hi, I’m in a dilemna. I developed toothache in April of last year whenever I ate or drank. My dentist removed a filling in what he thought was the problem tooth and redid it (bottom left molar). Toothache continued so he removed a filling from a tooth in the top and redid it. Toothache still continued so he went back to the first tooth and performed a root filling in Oct of last year. All treatment was carried out on the NHS.

First question: was it him removing the original filling that meant the tooth now needed to be root filled or had he missed something and it needed a root filling in April when I first went to him, or did it not need to be refilled at all since neither filling cured my toothache?

Not only do I still have toothache but the tooth which has been refilled twice is now very fragile, a lot of the tooth has been drilled away.

I have gone to another dentist who thinks the tooth behind the one with the root filling is probably causing the trouble. He thinks there may be a crack in it and advises me to leave it alone until a bit of it falls off. Problem is, although I did not mention which dentist I had been with, he seemed to know who he was and is friendly with him so I feel he is not going to say anything against him or his work. I live in a rural area and there is not much picking and choosing locally unless I travel some distance and probably long waiting lists as well.

Originally the tooth was only sore when I ate but now tends to ache all the time and is sore to touch. It has got progressively worse in the 2 weeks although not as bad this week as last for some reason. I am going on a fortnight’s holiday in 2 weeks time and am worried it will flare up when I am away.

I have always felt that the pain was coming from the tooth which he has now root filled. Could I have an abscess/ infection in this tooth or would the pain be much worse? Would an x-ray show if there was an abscess? Could it be a crack in the tooth beside it? Any other suggestions as to what could be causing my toothache? What would I do if I was abroad (in Spain) and a bit fell off my tooth or the toothache became unbearable?

Any advice would be much appreciated.

[Savvy_Sue]

What would I do if I was abroad (in Spain) and a bit fell off my tooth or the toothache became unbearable?As a non-dentist, the only sensible advice is to make sure you have your E112 with you, BUT ALSO separate travel insurance! All the E112 covers is you being treated as if you were a resident of Spain, but they probably pay something for dentistry up-front and you might be able to claim more on your travel insurance!

[Nile]

Hello Mad Dog

Welcome to the MSE site.:wave:

I'm sorry to hear about your long term suffering, toothache is awful.:sad:

You haven't mentioned whether your dentist has ever prescribed a course of antibiotics. I'm not a dentist and I don't want to step on anyones toes:o but perhaps your dentist will think that you may benefit from a course of antibiotics (if you haven't had any so far) to kill any bugs in the tooth.:confused:

Hopefully a dentist member eg Toothsmith or Teerah will post on this thread and give their expert advice.

Good luck, I hope you get the tooth (and toothache) sorted soon.

Regards

Nile

[Mad Dog]

Hi Nile

Thanks for your reply and for your welcome to the site.

No, I haven't tried antibiotics yet. Don't know if it would help. Like you said, I'm hoping some of the dentists will give me some advice.

[Teerah]

Hi Mad Dog,

ok will try and answer your questions :D

1) Since the root filling did not cure your pain, this would suggest that this was not where the pain was coming from. This however does not mean that the tooth did not require a root filling. Your dentist must have had a good reason to believe that the tooth required a root filling, for example there may have been signs of infection on a xray. It is obviously impossible for me to tell either way but some teeth can be infected and not cause symtoms and others will give a lot of pain.

Would not advise leaving the tooth until a piece may break off though :confused: It is obviuosly causing a lot of bother and 14months is a long time to put up with it. Cracked teeth tend to be sensitive or tender when biting on but should not cause a constant ache when not in use, Constant irritation of a nerve in a tooth being assaulted in such a way can cause nerve death and the more constant pain assoc with this. Again though I could not say whether or not this is what is happening in your case. This is pure hypothesis. It is true that toothache can get worse approaching a holiday period though as you will be worried that it will cause you problems whilst away. Do pain killers relieve the pain??

Your last questions::
Yes, despite the root filling having been done, it is possible that the tooth has become reinfected or absessed if the root filling is failing/has failed. Therefore this tooth, although "dead" could still cause pain. If this is the case the tooth will require the root filling to be redone or the tooth will have to be extracted whichever you prefer. Is this the tooth that feels tender to the touch now??

An xray should help to spot infection although it sometimes takes a while for the bony changes to become apparent. Also as your new dentist does not have access to your xray taken before the root filling was done he/she will not know if the area of suspicion on the xray is an area of new infection or if it is smaller than previously and therefore healing and shouldnt be touched.

Unable to give you any further info unfortunately. I would really try and get back into the dentists before you go, that would be the only thing I would advise. If the pain is that severe, you are taking a big risk of it spoiling your holiday if untreated. Perhaps your dentist could place some sort of sedative dressing to settle things temporarily?? If the pain is coming from a fractured cusp the pain usually actually disappears after the piece breaks off but if the fracture is deep in the tooth this is likely to be painful and may not fractire fully on its own accord. Hope you get it sorted, am in a bit if a rush tonight so hope some of that is helpful