root canal treatment - NHS and private costs & pros and cons

nimol

I mentioned sensitivity to my NHS dentisit on a check up and he coated the tooth. A few weeks later I developed full blown toothache. Went back and had an xray which was ok. The dentist said that the only thing he could do if it didn't settle down was take it out as the gum was receding. I'm sure there are lots of other treatments - the tooth is basically o.k.and firm. What can I do? The pain and sensitivity have gone at the moment btw

Toothsmith

He could root fill it - but that would slow him down and cause him to miss his NHS targets, which would result in a cut in his NHS funding.

amf1973

I recently had a filling re filled as some of a tooth had chipped off. (6th upper). I also wear a one tooth denture where the metal clip rests on one side of th said tooth
Absolutely no pain after the tooth had chipped. However after the filling now get some mild discomfort in the tooth every now and then, this could be because the metal clip is closer to the tooth nerve? The dentist shaved some of the filling on one side as it was initially a little uneven which kind of worked.
Anone know what to recommed?


I am taking the plunge with a implant so no denture in the future !

a_star_3

I'm having root canal tomorrow. Doing it on NHS it's costing 198 and I have the option of gold or porcelain crown.

They are doing everything private treatment would have but at the NHS price!

I am interested in implants, or maybe full crowns but hae no idea where to start on finding out prices!

Anybody got any advice? The idea is to get a full set of new teeth. I know implants will be very exp...

hethmar

You could contact some dentists in your area and just ask about the prices. My guy charges about £1700 + for implants. I had 6 crowns about 2 years back now and I think they cost about £450 each (the best porcelain - there are apparently grades)? But as I said, best thing is to contact a few dentists and ask for their price lists. Some have websites which give the prices.

Toothsmith

a_star wrote: »

They are doing everything private treatment would have but at the NHS price!

So that's 2 appointments for root filling of 45min - 1h each done under rubber dam, using rotary titanium instruments, that will only have been used on you?

The crown will be done on a seperate appointment of 45min- 1h for preparation, and 30-45 mins to fit it. The crown will be made at a good dental lab, and the dentist will be paying the technician at least £90 - £150 in lab fees alone?

Dream on!!!

hethmar

Have to agree a-star, I had a front tooth crowned by NHS and spent years hating it as it was so very obviously false. You really couldnt tell my privately done crowns werent my own teeth now. (Toothsmith - add on a visit to the technician so he could match the shade perfectly to that list of costs!)

maria1981

Hello Tootsmith,

just an update. I had the root canals done a year ago now. My xray at 6 months showed infection but much smaller one than previously and now 12 months later it`s all clear!
Thanks for advice..

Maria




[quote=Toothsmith;7646897 First of all, I would agree that amalgam fillings are the least of your worries, and really, you shouldn't get anything that is still functioning well changed just for the sake of it.

The root filling vs implant debate is an interesting one.

A root filled and crowned tooth, done by a real expert (rather than a pretend expert!!) should last at least a good 10 years if not longer. But it will have a life span.

This makes implant people think that the implant is the best option!

BUT - no-one yet really knows how long inmplants last as although they've been around about 10 years now, and 10 year survival times run at a good 95%, they've not been around much longer than that!

I often say to people that the only thing that has a chance of lasting you a lifetime is a completely untouched tooth. As soon as even the smallest filling is placed into it, then that filling has a life-span, and the thing that replaces it will always be a little bit more damaging, and last just a little bit shorter. Which is why it's always vital to get things done as small and as well as possible. (Which is why people are not 'lucky' to have NHS dentistry by and large!)

So - to return to your question, my answer would probably be to have the root fillings and crowns now - providing the dentist can promise a reasonable chance of success, but be saving up for the implants that will inevitabley follow in (hopefully) 15+ years.

If you have the implants now - you never know if the bone that will be left if/when they fail will be good enough to support more implants.

Hope that helps?[/quote]

silverfoxuk

I had RCT on an upper molar last September, private dentist. At the same time as RCT I took a week of amoxycillin. Two months later in November I had pain in same tooth, went back to same dentist. As soon as he drilled into tooth, the infected stuff inside started to drain out. My dentist gave me amoxycillin again, left the tooth open a few days to drain fully, and said come back in a week. I did so and he redid the RCT (for free!).

Then no problems until this weekend, sharp pain in same tooth, again! So, back to same dentist this afternoon who took an x-ray which revealed bacteria at tip of root. He said previous RCTs were a bit difficult as I have very curved roots, and the roots are quite short. I could see from the x-ray that whatever the dentist had put into the roots were extending further than the tip of the root. Is this any cause for concern? Anyway, he's given me another vial of amoxycillin tablets (will this do any good, it's the third time i've been on these in the last 6 months!) and said to come back in a week to discuss options. As this was an 'emergency' appt. at the end of the day I don't think he had much time to discuss with me today, other than to take a quick look. Meantime I am taking Ibuprofen and paracetamol to keep the pain bearable.

Any advice on what I should be asking him at my next visit next week? Is it about now that I ask to be referred to a specialist as a preference to having the tooth out? I would like to keep it if possible. Would RCT work 3rd time round?

maria1981

Hi Silverfox.

I am not a dental expert, but I would recommend to see a specialist. Normally a retreatment is not carried out by general dentist specially if your roots are oddly shaped.
I just had three re-treatments a year ago and just had a scan which shows my infection is gone.
If you live in London I can give you the specialist name.. He charges £900 per tooth.


Maria