Q. I have been suffering wit a dead front tooth (top) for over a month. The dentist has drilled a hole in the back of the tooth, and initially left the tooth open in order for the bacteria to be killed off by the oxygen. This alleviated the pain initially. The tooth was then padded with soaked disinfectant on cotton wool. Following this after a week or so the tooth was repacked but left open. After the following week the tooth was packed with cotton wool and then sealed with a temporary filling. This felt ok for a while and then the pain was too great and so I removed the temporary filling and the padding and left the tooth open. This alleviated the pain once more. The tooth has now been packed again and sealed over with a temp filling and the pain at this point is quite bad with pain now at the gum and painful to pressure. Should I leave the filling in place or remove it and let the air in again? Is there a better method, this all seems a little ludicrous for this day and age!!!