I had a root canal treatment a few years ago. My dentist put in a temporary filling. I think I was supposed to go back in for a dental crown or something, but I don’t like dentists (no offense). When they didn’t call me back, I didn’t remind them. After a while the tooth started hurting. It’s got another infection. Because I already had the root canal treatment, I think I would just need an antibiotic to clear this up, right? Which one?

Cameron

Dear Cameron,

If your root canal was done successfully, then there wouldn’t be any pain to your tooth. Either you are dealing with a failed root canal treatment or there is referred pain from another tooth infection. What you don’t want to do is just take antibiotics. These do not cure a tooth infection. All they can do is hold it at bay for a short time. Once the antibiotics run out, the infection will flare back up.

If it is the same tooth, you have two choices. Your first choice is to get a root canal re-treatmnet. There is still a chance that the second root canal will fail. If there is a part of the canal that can’t be reached, then it won’t matter how many times it is done.

A second option is to have the tooth extracted. This will definitely take care of the infection, but it also means replacing the tooth. My recommendation in that case would be a dental implant.

What you don’t want to do is leave it alone and allow it to blow up into another tooth infection. This can quickly turn into a dental emergency.

This blog is brought to you by a skilled Gilbert Dentist Dr. Matt Roper.