I Had A Crown On A Twisted Tooth Now It Is Infected And Causing Pain, Should I Have Had Root Canal Treatment Beforehand?

Q.
Hi,

My front tooth was very twisted so had some by drilling some of the tooth away and a crown, which looks much better. This was done privately as it was for cosmetic reasons. About 18months later I have had pain and infections but doesnt show up on X-rays. I have been suffering with this for about a year as the dentist just kept saying clean better as there is a pocket that food can get into. I clean thoroughly and regularly and it doesnt help and am still suffering. I was given antibiotics eventually but it didnt work at alll. I have continual pain and much discomfort when I speak. The dentist has recommended specialist root canal treatment but he said due to the very thin root he cannot do it himself. I am normaly an NHS patient so this is becoming very expensive for me. This makes me question should I have been given root canal treatment before the crown?

I would very much appreciate your help.  Thank you.

A.
It is not common or good practice to electively carry out root canal treatment before crowns are placed, unless it is indicated as necessary to achieve an aesthetic result. It is always desirable to keep teeth alive and avoid root canal treatment.

However it is a recognised possible complication that a tooth may die and require a root canal after most dental procedures that involve removal of tooth structure, such as crowns. If you crown a tooth that is really twisted to make it look straight then the risks of this happening become even higher than in the usual situations where a=crowns are required.

I would visit the root canal specialist as advised by your dentist as soon as possible – the quality of the root canal treatment is very important for the survival of the tooth as there is a % failure rate with root canals that you must understand. If the quality of the root canal is poor it is more likely to fail in the long term. I would consider visiting the specialist as an investment in the survival of your tooth as replacement options of a very high standard can often be more expensive than the root canal

I hope that helps you?

Kind regards

Dr Mark Hughes Harley Street Dental Studio 52 Harley Street, London W1G 9PY Web: www.harleystreetdentalstudio.com Tel: 020 7636 5981 View My Profile Dr Hughes

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