How can a denist not be sure if I could get a root canal?

Question

I went ot the denists to get a root canal and they said they would have to clean my tooth to see if i could get a root canal. They did and said i could get a root canal.. But why wouldnt someone know before that? Just by looking at the tooth?

Answer 1

I can see 2 possibilities:
1. The dentist was not sure if the root canal was needed. It happens when a large decay gets close to the pulp (nerve) on the radiograph. You may need just a deep filling or a root canal, depending on what the dentist finds after removing all the decay. You see radiographs show us the mineralized tissue of teeth and decay takes away the minerals. But the minerals are not removed completely at all depth, that way we see gradiants of grey on the radiographs. It's difficult to determine where the decay stops, and in fact, it actually stops further than shown most of the time. Also think that the radiograph is 2 dimensional. The decay might be in front of the pulp but in reality really far.
2. The other reason is that the dentist was not sure he could restore the tooth after the root canal is done. If a tooth lost too much structure or if the decay extends too far in the gingiva (gums), the dentist might not be able to place a filling or a crown . If you can place a filling, no need for a root canal, the extraction is the option left. So to see if this is the case, the dentist needs to remove all the decay and inspect what is left of the tooth. Again for the same reasons as previously mentionned, a radiograph is not perfect in showing us the restorability.

I believe the second reason is the one your dentist meant. This is a good decision he made.

Answer 2

Not sure about that, but I will give you a heads up. I don't know the reason for your root canal, but I tend to grind my back teeth when I sleep. They started hurting pretty bad so they did a root canal on one, when I went back to get the crown, the tooth had fractured and had to have it extracted. The one next to it still hurt, so I paid again to have a root canal and the same thing happened to it. I'm beginning to wonder if they crack the things while doing the root canal. They make up to $1000 on a root canal where an extraction runs about $100-135. So I wasted a ton of money for nothing.

If its a back upper tooth, I'd just have the dang thing pulled and be done with it. Lower teeth are harder because it creates a space and gravity will start to work on the upper tooth above that space.

Just an FYI!

Answer 3

I have a tooth that has no root to canal (as it were).

I was sent to get a RC on that tooth, the specialist poked around and did some more checking and HEY, you dont need one cuz you dont have a ROOT!
Saved me a grand.

Answer 4

It's like a motor car buddy. If it stops, then you have to look under the bonnet and check out the problem. With the body it's not always that simple. In order to be absolutely certain of the required procedure, a very close examination of the area must be carried out. This is to make sure treatment can be safely done for you, like ensuring there is no inflammation or infection.

Answer 5

If by "clean your tooth," the dentist meant to remove the decay, he just wanted to know if there would be enough tooth left to make it worth saving.

If he meant to clean it like you would have done at a checkup, he may have removed tartar to see how much bone support was left, for the same reason stated above.

Answer 6

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Root_canal

http://www.animated-teeth.com/root_canal/t1_root_canal.htm

HTH
(hope this helps)