Expert: Tony Appleton BDS DPDS - 10/6/2007

Question
I had a root canal done by a dentist in 2006 and I lost a good 2/3 of the tooth which was literally falling off during the root canal procedure due to decay. The dentist did the post but said he had to order the crown and it would take awhile. He cancelled several appointments and then I was sick and it actually ended up being 9 months before I found a new dentist who has done a gold crown. It is the very back tooth on my upper right (not sure of name). The new dentist said that the old one placed the post too far into the cavity and that leaving it open that long allowed for bacteria to get through to the bone. It started to hurt about 2 weeks after she put in the crown and the pain was extremely bad. I went to my dentist and she says the bacteria has flared up around the bone and that can be contained hopefully with antibiotics and a good immune system and not too much stress. She said it can lay dorment for a long time and hopefully I wont have to have surgery. I dont want to keep taking antibiotics if there is a better way to treat this. She said they would go in and scrape the bacteria away from the bone and that losing the tooth is the last thing we want. Any help please?

Answer
Hi Laura

Really the best treatment for this tooth would be to get an opinion from an endodontist. They may want to remove the crown and post and re-root treat the tooth, or they may opt for the surgery or advise extraction - but you need to be aware of all of your options

You are right - living on antibiotics is not a good idea, and you are only postponing the inevitable treatment or extraction of this tooth.

Regards

Tony Appleton