Toothache

[pll]

I don't have time for multiple trips to the dentist. Yeah, of course I'll make the time, but it does not fit well with my life plans...

You made me laugh! It's never a good time for the dentist or for getting sick... And if you had some spare time, the dentist would not be your choice, anyway.

Tooth ache is one of the worst pains. I am guessing you will get a crown, as fillings in back teeth seem to be 'out of fashion' these days, so to speak.

If a root canal is necessary, sedation is not, though. Why go there, unless you have some major phobia? A dentist won't have an anesthesiologist on call, so I'd view that as too risky. I have been unfortunate enough to have 3 root canals. Not particularly pleasant (your mouth is open for a loooong time), but I would not go for sedation except in a hospital. Take some music or podcasts instead.

[emily_in_nc]

If a root canal is necessary, sedation is not, though. Why go there, unless you have some major phobia? A dentist won't have an anesthesiologist on call, so I'd view that as too risky. I have been unfortunate enough to have 3 root canals. Not particularly pleasant (your mouth is open for a loooong time), but I would not go for sedation except in a hospital. Take some music or podcasts instead.

Conscious sedation is a little bit different from IV sedation (or general anesthesia) used in hospitals. It's just a sleeping pill and a Valium (or similar). My dentist had to receive special training and has a certification for monitoring patients under conscious sedation, and all dentists that use this procedure should also be certified. Yes, there's always a risk with any form of sedation, but to me, there's nothing like almost sleeping through a dental procedure and having almost no memory of it afterwards. To me it's really no different than having a colonoscopy, which I wouldn't do without sedation either (and I did that in an outpatient setting with IV sedation and an anesthesiologist).

Yes, I am a dental-phobe, and it's one of the very most common phobias. Conscious sedation has gotten many folks into a dentist's office that had been avoiding having necessary work done (some, even cleanings!) for years or even decades. For those folks, it is a wonderful thing and well worth the slight risk that comes with being sedated. There's also a big health risk in letting dental care slide.

[OakLeaf]

What Emily said - although there is IV conscious sedation too. It's what I had as a teenager when I had all four impacted wisdom teeth out at once, and it's what my very phobic DH's dentist uses. You're awake for the whole procedure but you have no memory of it afterward. The dentist is specially trained and certified in anaesthesia, and there's an EKG and probably other monitoring (I only know about the EKG because they had to shave DH's chest ). Is it as safe as being in a hospital, probably not, but (1) I doubt if there even are any hospitals that do routine periodontal work, and (2) as Emily said, the risk of letting your teeth go is much greater.

[bmccasland]

For temporary relief from tooth aches - try clove oil. I think you can buy it at a pharmacy.

Learned about it after I had dry sockets from having my wisdom teeth removed. Oral surgeon packed the holes with strips of gauze soaked in clove oil. Numbed the pain, and after a few dressing changes the holes healed. Food tasted strange though

[maillotpois]

I've had 4 root canals (one had to be re-done!) and they're sucky, but the improvement in the pain makes it SO worth it. I also have mostly crowns in the back now - super expensive, but also worth it (as opposed to the old fillings that fall apart and necessitate the root canals).

My last root canal came right after El Tour several years ago - I was head coach for TNT for the event and I was utterly miserable before and during the century. Alleve helped a little.

Good luck!

[SadieKate]

Hope they can solve the pain once and for all today, V. Tooth pain just wears me down faster than almost any other pain.

I've only had one root canal. It was done on a tooth that had a new crown but couldn't be saved anyway. The pain was so intense afer 3 days of vicodin not working (other than to keep me awake at night) that I was sweating and close to vomiting. The endodontist was being very nice explaining each step of the procedure but once he drilled through the crown the pressure was off and the anesthesia finally worked. So I asked him to please be quiet and let me sleep while he finished.

Now, let talk about a crown that breaks 3 times. Get zirconia for a bionic tooth!

[maillotpois]

My dentist is doing those crowns he makes in house now. I forget what they're called, but it's so much better leaving the office after one visit with a real tooth instead of that cardboard temporary tooth they would put in before. Were you being serious about zirconia? Sounds like something you'd get from Zales.

Speaking of vicodin and root canals, my family will never let me live down the Thanksgiving that I missed. I had a RC the day before Thanksgiving (the re-do one so it was way worse than the rest of the ones I had), I couldn't eat anything and was on only pain killers and wine. I slept through dinner.

[OakLeaf]

Now, let talk about a crown that breaks 3 times. Get zirconia for a bionic tooth!

That's why my dentist told me it wasn't even worth it for me to try porcelain. I've just got all the gold shining out the sides of my grin. Did you have your premolars removed when you were a kid? Many dentists I've seen as an adult have told me this was a big fad among dentists when people our age were kids. It totally ruined our bite and put the entire force of our jaws onto eight teeth. No wonder our molars crumble. Five crowns down, three more to go.

Plus, gold is supposed to be easier on your gums than porcelain.

I don't mind the feel of the temporary crown, but the offgassing makes me so sick I can't wait to get the stupid things out.

I'm going to have to get another one done pretty soon ... hope the tooth lasts until I get home or I'm going to have to find another dentist.