Dental Health & Cosmetics

Hey guys I have a few questions.

I have always had perfect teeth. And a very good experience at the dentist. I got my very first tiny cavity at 22 years old. I went in 4 months ago to get it filled and they did an exam and said my teeth looked great like always. On my chart they wrote in big black letter “NO DECAY!” I saw the nurse do this and she commented on how rare it was that a college age kid is taking such good care of their teeth, I told her my mom always stressed that for me.

So my 6 month cleaning was yesterday and OMG it was the most painful thing ever. I had blood all over the bib thing and the new nurse was being so rough I asked for a topical. When I went in I had no complaints about pain or sensitivity at all. My mom was going to meet me at the office and bring me lunch. Well the nurse hit a sensitive on one of me teeth that made me jump. She said I might have another small cavity. The doctor comes into exam me, the nurse and I tell him how sensitive it is. He hits it two more times and the second time I jump out of my chair and start crying ( I am not a baby when it comes to pain, I have 3 tattoos and 4 piercings so I can handle pain!) The doctor looks at me and says oh you need a root canal. I was very upset at this time and they just started to set up for one, not asking me anything! The nurse was trying to get me back in the chair and I refused, right then my mom walked in to bring me lunch and heard me upset and came back. My mom saw all the blood and my crying and asked what was going on I had just come in for a cleaning.

My mom goes into the hall with the doctor to talk about what was going on and this nurse starts to reprimand me. Telling me I was going to lose my teeth and if I don’t shape up and my teeth was going to age me 10 years. I’m standing there crying (now because of the fear that I might have a root canal RIGHT NOW) with pads in my mouth to stop the bleeding (I have never before bleed during a cleaning before!) and she has the nerve to yell at me. I have been going to this office for 4 years now. When I got my first cavity my normal doctor and nurse did the filling and since I was very nervous my doctor got one  of the front desk girls to come in and hold my hand through the whole thing! So this is not the norm for them.

My mom decides it would be best to get a second opinion because she like me doesn’t understand how 4 months ago I had a clean bill of health and up to the day of the cleaning have absolutely NO pain and now I need a root canal!

So my question is can needed a root canal develop that fast??? Do you think getting a second opinion is a good idea? Or should I just bite the bullet and get it done? Also if I do get it done and I picking to be sedated so how long will it be until I am back to normal?

Please let me know what you think and any advice would be greatly appreciated! Sorry this is so long! Part of me needed to vent I have NEVER been made to feel like that by a doctor before.

I am so sorry that you had such an awful experience this time. Something definitely isn't right and a second opinion is a good idea. I have never heard of a tooth becoming so bad that quickly and the only thing that comes to mind is that something may have been done at your last visit. Was this the same tooth that was filled a few months ago, or another one?

Has anything health-wise changed for you? To suddenly have so much blood loss and pain during a normal cleaning is unusual and I agree with your Mom; get a second opinion!

Please let us know what you decide and what is determined, OK?

CL of  Back & Neck Pain, Stomach, Digestive & Bowel Disorders and  Dental Health & Cosmetics

 

hello!

i am very sorry for your bad experience. you sound like a great patient, cavity free until 22! impressive :)

i had my first one filled at 11, and i cried. not because it hurt, but because i wanted to be cavity free!

i have a feeling this may be a one time occurrence since you stated you had a new hygienist and have never had a problem at this office before. sometimes offices even hire temps if someone is sick and i've heard that some temps may not be as 'nice' as the usual staff. i would recommend asking for a hygienist you had in the past that you had no concerns with.

however there are some other possible reasons for bleeding besides a rough hygienist. such as gingivitis, medications, birth control or it being around that time of the month. hormone changes can cause bleeding in a healthy looking mouth.

a 2nd opinion is always a good idea for any dental work you may be questioning.

did you have x-rays at your last cleaning or this one? a dentist usually can't determine if a root canal needs to be done without an x-ray.

it can take a while for some cavities to form, anywhere from 6-9 months, because of this it's possible to not have any cavities at once visit and the next time have multiple. but the dentist should be able to show you your last cavity free x-rays and the current one so you can see the difference. http://www.animated-teeth.com/tooth_decay/t3_tooth_decay_remineralization.htm

it is also possible for teeth to have tiny tiny cracks in them and for bacteria to go into the cracks and cause a problem with the nerve which would then need a root canal.

but like the person before me said, was this the same tooth you had the filling on before? sometimes teeth don't 'settle down' after fillings or if it close to the nerve, the nerve just gets irritated. http://www.animated-teeth.com/root_canal/t3_root_canal_reasons.htm

there are many scenarios to this however the dentist and/or hygienist should have taken the time to explain the cause for the problem so both you and your mother could understand what happened between now and your last cleaning to necessitate a root canal on someone who was told takes very good care of their teeth.

if you like your dentist and trust him i'd set up a consultation appointment to look over the x-rays and have him explain it to you. it's your right as a patient to be fully aware of your options and understand everything before going through with the procedure.

i know very little about sedation except for oral sedation and nitrous oxide which is only an analgesic (dulls pain). dentists cannot do IV sedation unless they are also an anesthesiologist. are you going to a specialist or are you going to take oral sedation like Valium? oral sedation won't knock you out, just make you feel like you've had a few drinks and maybe a little tired. it lasts about 4-6 hours depending on what you take and how much.
http://www.dental--health.com/faq_sedation.html

please let us know how everything goes :)

-michelle