Expert: Frederick R. Liewehr DDS, MS, FICD - 10/4/2008

Question
I had a tooth prepped for a root canal. A hole was drilled through the metal crown and tooth. It has been 6 months and i have yet to have the root canal done. Now i can see what looks like my gum sticking out of the hole. I can not close my mouth or chew it is very painful. I find that it gets real bad and swollen when i sleep. Now what and can i still have the root canal on the tooth?

Answer
I have no idea what is sticking out of the access opening in your tooth. Generally when the tooth is accessed, the dentist will place a piece of cotton in the opening, covered with a weak temporary restoration like Cavit. This is good only for a couple weeks. If you have waited this long, the Cavit may have broken away and what is sticking out may be the piece of cotton with blood etc. on it. The collapse of the Cavit would have allowed bacteria into the tooth, which is undoubtedly now all infected inside and below it in your jaw, which is causing the pain. You need to get to an endodontist who can determine whether the tooth is still salvageable.