Dr. Hall, i had a root canal on monday at noon- i have taken motrin 3 times a day for 3 days now & nam takeing a antibiotic also. today is the 4th day and i am still haveing some pains. is that normal & if so how much longer should i have to take motrin?
thks
Answer:
It’s not unusual for a tooth to hurt after a root canal treatment, and it doesn’t mean that the root canal wasn’t done correctly. What happens is that the process of cleaning out the inside of the tooth to the very tip can force some infected material out through the tip into the tissue that connects the tooth to the jawbone. This tissue then becomes inflamed, and can make the tooth sore to the touch. It can even cause the tooth to swell up some in the socket, which causes you to hit it extra hard when you bite, and this also can further aggravate the inflammation.
The key is whether or not the tooth is getting better, even though this improvement may be slow. If it is getting worse, you need to go back to your dentist.
What I always did, after a root canal treatment, was to adjust the treated tooth so that it wouldn’t hit when the patient bit down. These teeth would almost always need a dental crown afterward, which would require that the tooth be reduced all the way around anyway, so I just did some of that reduction after the root canal treatment was done, to help insure that the tooth was comfortable post-operatively.
– Dr. Hall
Links: Read more about pain after root canal treatment.
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About David A. Hall
Dr. David A. Hall was one of the first 40 accredited cosmetic dentists in the world. He practiced cosmetic dentistry in Iowa, and in 1990 earned his accreditation with the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry. He is now president of Infinity Dental Web, a company in Mesa, Arizona that does advanced internet marketing for dentists.
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