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

cielbleu

Hi everyone, I have root canal treatment at the upper left back tooth under nhs last friday. An x-ray was taken after the treatment. I have been told one of the three pulps wasn’t not filled to its full length: only reached half of its distance, while the others were filled probably. I was asked go back after three months to recheck and to see if a crowned is required. Now there is no pain in my tooth, apart from there is still some uncomfortable feeling when biting.

Here are my questions:
should I worry about one of the pulp actually aren't probably filled? Is there anything I can do about it? As I read about not probably filled pulp could cause failure.
I can feel there is some stickiness at the root canal filled tooth after clenching, is it normal?
When should I expect the uncomfortable feeling be gone when biting food?
is it normal to wait for three months to see if it is needed to put on a crown? as I thought a crown is necessary for tooth at the back anyway.

Thanks in advance

Ollycob

Hello

I have a few questions I would like to ask any dentists still about if that is ok?
I am an extremely nervous patient with a very good NHS practice in Surrey. They are very kind, patient and helpful and are happy to put up with my near-full-blown panic attacks as soon as anything other than a routine check up is required!
My questions are:
1. I have been told that I need a root canal treatment on my 3rd tooth from the back on the lower right hand side. Due to my extreme fear I am being referred to a specialist so I can be put to sleep for the procedure. Will this be under the NHS as I have been referred by a NHS dentist or will it be private?

2. What are the pro's and con's of having a RCT over an extraction?

3. If I am being put to sleep will they do it in one go or will I have to still have two treatments?

4. Can someone talk me step by step through both procedures?

I am grateful for any advice!

OC

jugglebug

Ollycob wrote: »

Hello

I have a few questions I would like to ask any dentists still about if that is ok?
I am an extremely nervous patient with a very good NHS practice in Surrey. They are very kind, patient and helpful and are happy to put up with my near-full-blown panic attacks as soon as anything other than a routine check up is required!
My questions are:
1. I have been told that I need a root canal treatment on my 3rd tooth from the back on the lower right hand side. Due to my extreme fear I am being referred to a specialist so I can be put to sleep for the procedure. Will this be under the NHS as I have been referred by a NHS dentist or will it be private?

2. What are the pro's and con's of having a RCT over an extraction?

3. If I am being put to sleep will they do it in one go or will I have to still have two treatments?

4. Can someone talk me step by step through both procedures?

I am grateful for any advice!

OC

Sorry but these questions are all impossible to answer over the internet as they are very specific to you.
1. NHS or private? Depends on who you have been referred to. Only your dentist knows that.
2. Again depends on your own condition, how many teeth left, state of teeth etc One thing for sure is that if you have it out it wont grow back, and the options to fill the space may be more expensive and time consuming than saving the tooth in the 1st place
3 You will have to ask the operating dentist that, are you sure you are being "put to sleep" I would have thought sedation is more likely. Full GA for a RCT is very rare
4. You probably dont want to know to be honest. Root treatments are dull as hell and I have had people fall asleep through boredom whilst I have been doing them. But if I describe everything in glorious technicolour it will sound nasty:o

D4G

Hello Toothsmith

One of my teeth, that had previously been filled, broke again recently (part of the tooth, not the filling). The dentist told me that because the break was so far down - it is likely that it will require RCT in the future.

My question is this - After reading a number of your posts on this forum, it seems that you are suggesting that removal is a viable alternative to RCT. My line of thought is that in regard to RCT - given the cost, the potential for the treatment to be ineffective, the likelyhood that it may require further treatment, the complexity of additional treatment, the future costs, the potential that it may effect other teeth etc.... It seems that for a worry free life after treatment, removal seems like the better (+ cheaper) option. I'm not particularly worried about having a gap in my smile - at the moment, the gum covers the tooth somewhat anyway.

Am I missing something here? Is removal a viable alternative to a first-time RCT? and if so, what are the implications of having it removed? Do i risk infection? Or set myself up for future dental treatment? Will eating be awkward or uncomfortable? Essentially - is there any real disadvantage of having it removed other than visual appeal?

Thanks your replies in this thread, it has cleared a lot of things up for me!

welshdent

Removal and RCT are the only viable options of each other end of. What toothsmith was alluding to was that if a specialist referral was advised which would cost around £700 and then a crown - varies from material to material but ball park 4 - 600 for a white crown ish ... maybe more ... then if you wanted to NOT have a gap then extraction and an implant may be a viable and more predictable option given the comparative costs involved.

Root fillings are not 100% effective (neither are implants in fact). They can be very complex procedures and are potentially very technique sensitive. In order to carry one out then the tooth has to be deemed restorable once a root filling is carried out otherwise there is no point wasting time and money on it.

Extractions are I think it is safe to say - 100% effective at eliminating infection from a tooth. If it is gone it can not cause a problem. You may or may not want the gap filled. That is going to up to you (it may not be possible to fill the gap). Front teeth - aesthetics, biting, drifting of adjacent teeth can all be issues for a gap. At the back - drifting, food packing, rotation of teeth, tipping of adjacent teeth, over eruption of opposing teeth. Factirs only you can bear in mind with a discussion with your dentist based on YOUR case.... so yes an extraction is a perfectly viable alternative to a root filling

D4G

OK, great. Thanks for your help

Dixie1953

I'm hoping one of the experts here can advise me please?
I have had a RCT on an upper right molar by my NHS dentist. I have had to take continuous courses of antibiotics since it was first done, due to the infection above the root of the tooth persisting. I have had 4 courses in the 6 weeks until I could get back to the dentist. On several occasions i have had to have large boils lanced by the dentist due to there size and the pressure building up in the layers of my uppper inner palette. Last Monday I went back again and he repeated the same treatment I had 6 weeks ago in order to try an stop the infection. He gave me another lot of antibiotics, and again my inner palette inflammed overnight and had to be lanced. As mentioned on this forum, I have never had a rubber protector (if that is the right word to use) used on any visit.
I must admit I am loosing faith in my dentists ability to treat me - as others have mentioned, the visits are too far in between. A friend who had this done privately said he had been back in to have the infection drained (by having the temporary filling replaced) 5 times over a fortnight. Is it time to either visit my local dental hospital for a review, or go private (there is a specialist private RCT centre nearby, but expensive), or just have the tooth removed. I don't feel there has been anytime when the infection wasn't present and am concerned about taking so many antibiotics. Your advise would be gratefully received. FYI I only have one other tooth missing (Lower Left Molar) and no other fillings.

jugglebug

Dixie1953 wrote: »

I'm hoping one of the experts here can advise me please?
I have had a RCT on an upper right molar by my NHS dentist. I have had to take continuous courses of antibiotics since it was first done, due to the infection above the root of the tooth persisting. I have had 4 courses in the 6 weeks until I could get back to the dentist. On several occasions i have had to have large boils lanced by the dentist due to there size and the pressure building up in the layers of my uppper inner palette. Last Monday I went back again and he repeated the same treatment I had 6 weeks ago in order to try an stop the infection. He gave me another lot of antibiotics, and again my inner palette inflammed overnight and had to be lanced. As mentioned on this forum, I have never had a rubber protector (if that is the right word to use) used on any visit.
I must admit I am loosing faith in my dentists ability to treat me - as others have mentioned, the visits are too far in between. A friend who had this done privately said he had been back in to have the infection drained (by having the temporary filling replaced) 5 times over a fortnight. Is it time to either visit my local dental hospital for a review, or go private (there is a specialist private RCT centre nearby, but expensive), or just have the tooth removed. I don't feel there has been anytime when the infection wasn't present and am concerned about taking so many antibiotics. Your advise would be gratefully received. FYI I only have one other tooth missing (Lower Left Molar) and no other fillings.

If you have had repeated infections after a RCT has been completed then it seems that the RCT has been unsucessful (it happens to the best of us) It either needs redoing (which really is a specialist job) or extracting as far as I can tell over t'internet without actually seeing you or your radiographs

Dixie1953

Thanks, Jugglebug.
If I do try a specialist, will they just go ahead and try another RCT and charge me, say £500 whatever, or will they review the situation and then decide whether to go ahead, and as I am now a bit sceptical as to the chances of it being successful, if they did go ahead and it wasn't successful and an extraction followed, would I still have to pay the full amount?

welshdent

Any endodontist worth their salt (specialist) will examine first and then advise. Most I know are quite particular and will not willingly attempt something doomed to failure. You only have to spend a short time browsing forums that these sorts inhabit to see JUST how particular some people can be. At the top of a specialism the quest to better oneself just seems to get stronger .... so what I am saying is that they WILL investigate thoroughly. they WILL advise on what they feel is best for you. Many people will rely on goodwill, word of mouth and referrals to them. So that means that they wont want a string of unhappy patients. They want to be known as the excellent dentist that saved someones otherwise doomed tooth. Success breeds success and all that. They may even say that yes a tooth can be saved then 5 minutes later following removal of a filling quickly close it all back up and say actually I have just found a full length crack in your tooth and I have revised my prognosis and feel the best method of treatment for this tooth is some sun on the end of some surgical steel (extraction).
So overall I would trust their opinion and their feelings on if they could do a better job. Without seeing your tooth in its current state and without seeing HOW it was originally done we can no comment for or against success.
That said ... IF they recommend treatment and despite their best efforts you fail to respond to therapy ... then it would be up to them if they gave a refund or not. I would guess not but they may say as a goodwill gesture, if it fails within the first year they will re treat at no extra charge. That is something you would need to bear in mind before commencing any treatment. But do not worry about them too much as it is very much in their interests to provided top care