Dentist help - extraction or root canal????

[tenlittlecygnets]

Got a sore tooth. Got emergency appt with private dentist today and they said they could extract it or do root canal - extraction £240, root canal £1,500, but no guarantee of success because I have gum disease.

What would you do? Just want the pain to go away...

And I am so scared of the dentist. 2 hours treatmetn for a root canal??!

Help...

Sorry, that's not to dismiss people who suffer terribly. I know it can be much more unpleasant. But I'd say for the vast majority, it's totally manageable.

If it were me I'd get an extraction. I've had 2 root canals, one went fine but the other left me so numb that I chewed off the inside of my lip in my sleep and it ended up getting infected. They also took multiple visits as had to get a temp filling then the crown fitted later, wish I'd just had it yanked out.

I had the exact same options presented to me a few weeks ago. My dentist is a brilliant and I trust his professional judgement 100%. He told me there was no guarantee that the root canal would be successful, in which case I’d almost certainly have to have an extraction anyway. I’d be asking what they think the success rate of the root canal is because it’s a lot of pain and money for a treatment that might not be successful.

I just had ibuprofen for a few days and it was fine. Less painful that the tooth before extraction. The actual extraction was quick and pain free too

Never ever trust this dentist yet !!!!!

Go and get a second opinion!!!

I was told root canal or pull out. Went 20 mins for pull out but I was so scared I told them to stop. I’ve got rods in it and 70 % un natural tooth .

The filling that was put in - still going strong 2 yrs .....

Are you private by any chance ?

I was and they wanted that tooth for cash !!!!

Always 2 nd opinion even if it’s means paying private.

I’m in uk xxx good luck xxx

But my sister had amazing root canal .... pain free.

I’d just never trust a dentist with what happened with me

Good luck hope it’s sorted soon x

Can you see the tooth when you smile widely?

Root canals are like a last resort to save a dying/dead tooth. They can work very well but can also fail, it depends on so many factors not just dentist skill. If you are set on keeping the tooth for as long as possible go for this.

If you'd be comfortable living with the gap the extraction leaves, or forking out for an implant in future (roughly a couple of grand) then extraction could be the way forward. I wouldn't worry about the pain, teens have teeth extracted all the time for ortho. You'll be numb, experience some tugging and may have some pain for up to a week which is well managed with normal painkillers. If you have gum disease changes are the support around the tooth is weaker anyway so less tugging needed. Dry socket is easily avoided, just don't smoke and clean the area very gently. Warm saltwater mouth rinses work a treat.

Bear in mind if you do want an implant in future you absolutely must get your gum disease under control first.

@Ilovechoc12

Never ever trust this dentist yet !!!!!

Go and get a second opinion!!!

I was told root canal or pull out. Went 20 mins for pull out but I was so scared I told them to stop. I’ve got rods in it and 70 % un natural tooth .

The filling that was put in - still going strong 2 yrs .....

Are you private by any chance ?

I was and they wanted that tooth for cash !!!!

Always 2 nd opinion even if it’s means paying private.

I’m in uk xxx good luck xxx

The dentist was actually suggesting the cheaper option I’m in UK too if it helps

Had this almost exactly a year ago and opted for the extraction. It turned out I'd made the correct decision as when it was removed the dentist said root canal would have almost certainly failed. I would have been in the middle of treatment when lockdown kicked in so that would have probably gone badly.
Thankfully it was over in seconds and my dentist was amazing but due to lockdown I couldn't go for a planned consultation regarding an implant. To be honest I've got used to it. I have a gap bottom left but it isn't visable when I smile and doesn't cause any issues so I'll not bother now.
Good luck with whatever you decide.

Only thing about a gap (I have one - extraction) and now lost crown on the other side - is you tend to eat on other side or unevenly between the sides which can lead to problems. Think that’s how my crown weakened - avoiding my gap side.

Update - for anyone who's interested - I had my tooth out this morning.

The dentist was very good, very patient, explained what he was doing, said he'd stop at any time... very gentle.

Explained that you don't pull a tooth out but push it out - lots of wiggling. Some nasty cracking noises as the tooth came out, but took about 15 mins and honestly wasn't nearly as bad as I had thought.

Thank you all for your advice.

Anaesthetic beginning to wear off now...

Well done
Do not try and eat rice for quite some time

Omg, I thought rice would be ok. Does it get in the gap?!

Dentist here. I know it's a bit late and you've had the procedure. But that price??? Wow! Find another dentist. I'm private and I'd charge probably £60 for extraction and root canal starts about £250...
nhs costs £20 ish extraction and less than £100 ish for root canal.

I hope he wore gold plate gloves to justify that

Ugh it’s so hard to know what to do. I had an issue with the same tooth but at the bottom. Tried root canal and it failed. I ended up with an infection but they didn’t realise until they were taking out the tooth. The anaesthetic didn’t take properly due to the infection, the abscess burst in my mouth and the extraction was the most painful thing I have ever done (I’ve had kids!) however....it healed really well and I do have a gap but I can eat fine. I was just relived to have it out after 6 months of pain.

I had a back tooth extracted as I couldn’t bear the thought of root canal work especially as the dentist said it might not work as the root was not straight. I had it done under sedation, so didnt feel a thing, no pain afterwards, no dry socket. All good.

Ive just had a lower back tooth one in from the very back crowned though. It was massively filled and the filling was breaking off. I wasn’t really in pain. The crown is great!

Tooth removal cost me £42 + and additional £80 for the sedation, crown cost £280. All on the good old NHS.

@digitaldays - ouch! Tbh it was worth it...

The practice is open 8-8 7 days a week offering emergency appointments and no other practices round here are offering appointments so quickly. I'm not with an NHS dentist.

Their hygienist appointments are £55 - the same price as our local NHS practice.

@tenlittlecygnets

Omg, I thought rice would be ok. Does it get in the gap?!

Yes, yes it does

I'm just finishing a root canal and crown which cost me £1,500 .it would have been less (£1.200 ) if I had not chosen a white crown and even less ( £900) if I could have found an NHS dentist to do the root canal bit before Christmas as I was in so much pain I went private

I am not sorry I did it, the payment was gone after the first appointment and I now have a normal tooth. If I had chosen an extraction I know if have wanted an implant which is even more expensive

When will the gun heal over? The blood clot still feels a bit flappy... (sorry for tmi)...

Wasn't sore yesterday but my cheek is sore now - delayed reaction?

I had it done before Christmas, felt a bit gummy for a while but not too bad. The worse thing was having the extraction tbh. Well actually, what came first was worse. The tooth cracked also splitting the root (or something) never felt pain like it, worse than being in labour.

@icelollycraving

I had it done before Christmas, felt a bit gummy for a while but not too bad. The worse thing was having the extraction tbh. Well actually, what came first was worse. The tooth cracked also splitting the root (or something) never felt pain like it, worse than being in labour.

Oh ouch, that sounds horrendous. Poor you!

Oh the memories of eating rice post extraction