Tooth Ache Pain

Changing Your View Of Root Canals

Tooth ache pain can lead to an emergency dental procedure. A severe toothache may mean you need root canal treatment. As an endodontist ( root canal specialist ) for more than 20 years I've seen many people for emergency dental visits. They come to get relief from their severe toothache. I've been asked many questions about tooth ache pain. Here are some of the common ones:

Tooth Ache Pain FAQ

1. What can cause a severe toothache?

• Deep dental decay
• Previous deep dental filling
• Previous crown placed on tooth
• Cracked tooth
• Trauma to the tooth

2. How can a little tooth cause so much tooth ache pain?

It surprises most people that a tiny tooth can cause an emergency dental visit for such a severe toothache. The severity of tooth ache pain is due in large part to the location of the dental pulp ( tooth nerve ). It is encased within the hard tooth structures and therefore has no room to swell when it becomes inflamed. The pressure within the tooth can build up quickly and cause much pain until it is relieved. If you need root canal treatment for a severe toothache it usually won't wait until it is convenient for your schedule. That's why an endodontist ( root canal specialist ) sees many patients for emergency dental care.

3. Why can't I take medicine to fix my tooth?

Again, this has to do with the location of the source of your tooth ache pain. If you have a severe toothache coming from a diseased dental pulp medicine simply cannot get to the pulp in a sufficient volume. Medicine is carried to body parts in the blood and there isn't enough blood flow to the inside of the tooth to heal the diseased pulp.

If you have an abscessed tooth you may be able to take antibiotics and pain medication for temporary relief. That's because the pain with an abscessed tooth can be coming from the bone around the tooth more than the diseased pulp within the tooth. In this case there would be adequate blood flow to the affected area for the medicine to be effective. The tooth will still need to be treated eventually. Otherwise the tooth ache pain will return.

4. Do I need root canal treatment if I just had a crown placed on this tooth?

It is always confusing when someone has a crown placed and then develops a severe toothache. I've had many patients tell me that didn't have any tooth ache pain until their dentist placed their crown. Let me try to  explain this so you'll know your dentist didn't cause you to need root canal treatment.

Most teeth that have a crown placed already had a large filling in it. We could say that a tooth like this is "stressed." In other words it has undergone procedures in the past that caused inflammation but not enough inflammation to cause a problem. It is made more vulnerable to causing a severe toothache with each additional dental procedure. The inflammation by the crown procedure is like the "final straw' for your tooth's dental pulp. It simply cannot heal once again. The pulp must be removed. There is no way your dentist can know in advance if your pulp has enough healing capacity remaining to withstand the crown procedure.

5. Do I have to see an endodontist if I need root canal treatment?

No, some general dentists are very proficient at performing root canals. All dentists receive training in endodontics (root canal therapy) in dental school. The difference is that an endodontist goes to school an extra 2 years to specialize and practice endodontics exclusively.

No matter who does your root canal there is ONE QUESTION YOU SHOULD ASK BEFORE HAVING YOUR ROOT CANAL.

You simply must get a YES answer to this question. I'll give you my recommendation for what to do if you get a NO answer. I discuss this in Chapter 5 of The Relaxed Root Canal.

If you need root canal treatment you are not alone. Millions of root canals are performed each year. And if you're nervous about your root canal you're not alone.

I wrote The Relaxed Root Canal to help people conquer their fear of root canals.

You can be reading this book within minutes on your computer.

Purchase The Relaxed Root Canal right now for only $12

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In this book I answer over 80 questions that I've been asked through the years by patients who need root canal treatment. Many of these patients had severe tooth ache pain and plenty of questions about how to get rid of their pain.

Some of them try a home remedy for tooth ache pain that makes pain and swelling worse. I discuss this in Chapter 11. This is one home remedy for a severe toothache that you will want to avoid!

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