Root Canal Pain Changing Your View Of Root Canals

Root canal pain is no fun! It may come on gradually over several days or weeks.Or, it may unexpectedly wake you up in the middle of the night. It can be slight or severe.

Here’s what you need to know:

The Facts About Root Canal Pain:

• Spontaneous, throbbing tooth pain 

This is one of the classic signs of a root canal problem. But it can also create quite a challenge for a dentist.

The challenge is when the pain has yet to localize to one particular tooth. Your dentist will need to use a variety of tests in conjunction with a dental x-ray to try and determine the source of pain.

Sometimes it may be prudent to wait until the pain localizes before beginning root canal therapy.

What causes this type of pain in a tooth?

Spontaneous pain that wakes you up at night can be caused by an extremely inflamed dental pulp. This tissue contains nerve and blood vessels much like other soft tissue in your body.

If you have inflammation in the soft tissue of your finger you will notice that it turns red and swells. This helps keep the pain from becoming too intense.

However the dental pulp is contained within the hard tooth structure. Therefore, it cannot swell in order to relieve the pain of inflammation.

• Pain on biting 

This is one of the most common root canal symptoms that sends people to their dentist immediately.

This symptom develops when the inflammation of the dental pulp spreads to the ligament surrounding the root. This ligament (known as the periodontal ligament) attaches your root to the socket in your jawbone.

When it becomes inflamed it becomes very sensitive to light pressure. When you bite on the tooth it puts pressure on the inflamed ligament at the tip of the root and causes pain.

• Hot and cold sensitivity 

This one can be tricky. Not all temperature sensitivity indicates the need for root canal therapy.

If you eat or drink something hot or cold and it causes sensitivity that goes away quickly it may indicate:

• A leaking filling. (A new filling may solve the problem)
• The presence of a crack. (Sometimes a crown is all that is needed.)
• Exposure of the sensitive root surface. (May require a filling or desensitizing procedure.)
• Mild trauma. (Biting on something hard can cause this. It usually resolve in a few days.)

So, if your tooth continues to hurt after the hot or cold is removed you need to be examined by your dentist. It is likely that you will need a root canal treatment.

Root canal pain causes stress! Hearing the words, “you need root canal therapy” can add fear and anxiety to your stress.

I’ve performed thousands of root canal treatments in over a 20 year period. Nobody is excited about needing one and most people are fearful.

To add to the stress is the information about root canals being controversial. I talk about this in chapter 9 of The Relaxed Root Canal.

I wrote this book to help decrease the anxiety associated with root canals. I sincerely believe you can have a relaxed root canal experience.

In The Relaxed Root Canal I answer over 80 questions about root canal therapy and provide helpful tips on how to be relaxed before, during, and after your root canal treatment.

For more information on The Relaxed Root Canal please CLICK HERE.

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