Is having a root canal worth it?

Question

I have a bad cavity and Im told I need to either have the tooth pulled or a root canal. Its my very last molar(not wisdom) and I still have a baby tooth two teeth in front of it and it wont last forever. Its going to cost 1275 for the root canal and 1000 for a crown. Is it worth doing I heard they dont last and often fail.

Like I said the tooth two in front of it is no way permanent. It may last a year or 20. My regular dentist says once I have the Root Canal (at a specialist) I could wait a year before needing it capped but that seems llike a long time. And the specialist wants it capped in 2 weeks

Answer 1

Please listen to me!
Get a root canal! Depending on what dentist you go to you may be able to have it done with no more pain than a normal filling. I had one done at this great dentist in Boston, and I had less pain than another time when I had a regular filling.
It's always worth it to save your teeth, you can never grow new teeth, so do everything you can to preserve your natural teeth!!!
Believe me, I'm no tooth expert, but I know a lot of people who have missing teeth, bridges and dentures and they all wish they could have their natural teeth.

Answer 2

Are Root Canals Worth It

Answer 3

What will happen is that the tooth will be denerved.

This is very difficult to do - all the roots have to be filled - in a molar, that means 4 roots.

I would advise you to treat this very seriously and get an endodontist - a recommended specialist - not a general dentist to do this work.

After about 5 years the tooth will go gray and its structure will weaken. After about 10 years you will need fillings and repeat repair work done as it start to fall apart. After about 15 years it will fracture completely.

When it fractures, if the root canals have not been sealed by the endodontist, you will suffer from an abcess as barteria gets in without knowing it as you feel no pain.

If you try to get the tooth filled again to repair it, you will have a chronic abcess which will eat its way into your body, bloodstream and could eventually kill you.

(this happened to me)

I would say it's worth getting it done, for 10, maybe 15 years or so of use, because the molar is such an important tooth - but demand an x-ray of the roots so your dentist can check that the endodontist has sealed off each root.

The price of the crown seems expensive though. Have you thought of having a crown - a routine procedure - fitted elsewhere for less?

Answer 4

Is the infected molar also a "baby" tooth? If it is, just have it pulled. If it isn't....well, frankly, I think the cost just doesn't justify the result. I've had no less than seven root canals, followed by crowns and a permanent bridge. All the crowns are cracked after 15 years, the bridge had to be replaced after 5 years, and it has cracked again. The monetary costs are exhorbitant and the pain involved is no small thing. I personally will NEVER have another root canal, I will just have the darned tooth pulled.
However, I am 52 years old, and that has alot to do with my decision. When I was younger it was more important, both healthwise and socially, to have a good set of teeth. So, I think that should be considered as well.
If you have more primary molars coming in, I would let the back one be pulled and not worry about it. Just my opinion.

Answer 5

If your dentist believes that the tooth cannot be saved by fixing the cavity, then you have to think about which option would be best for the overall health of your mouth and chewing ability. A root canal essentially kills the tooth; you won't feel the pain any more but the fact you can't feel it any more can delay the detection of other problems. The other option is having the tooth pulled and putting in a bridge, which can be just as expensive.
I personally would have a crown done. I have a damaged tooth that I know will eventually have to be dealt with, and I feel that killing or removing an otherwise healthy tooth would be counterproductive, so when the time comes I'm having a crown put in.

Answer 6

I had one done because my filling had come out of my last molar and it eventually chipped. Ok so the root canal wasn't as bad as people lead you to believe it wasn't that painful, so that part was ok. What sucked monkey balls, was the fact that my dentist ordered a crown that was way too big for my mouth, even though we took a mold. My teeth get smaller the farther back you go and he ordered a crown that was as big as one of my front molars.

So that part was painful because the first time he put it in, it totally irritated my gum line, and I couldn't close my mouth all of the way. So basically my mouth was lopsided it closed on one side, and the other side was open a tad, and that little difference makes such a big deal when it comes to your mouth. So it was really uncomfortable.

I went back to let him know, and instead of him saying well this is not going to fit, he shaved down my real tooth that sits directly above the one with the crown, without even notifying me beforehand. Which I don't know why he would permanently alter my real tooth for a fake one.

Long story short that still didn't work I had to keep going back because it did not fit, and it would pop off when I'd chew something. So eventually i said the hell with it, and took it off permanently and now I still have the post in my gums, and some tooth left and I chew on that with no problems. So if I had to do it again I would probably do it after lots of research and questioning. So I would definitely consider it if I were you, but I'd do my research first and find a very talented and warm dentist, before I made any firm decision.

Answer 7

When I was 13 I had 2 root canals - they basically clean and disinfect the root that is causing the problem and then insert some stuff that is supposed to help fight future infections. I luckily had a hole in my root, so about 6 moths later I needed another one because all the stuff they put into the root had seeped out. Then again a year later they had to do a root section (they remove part of the root) all on the same tooth. Now I am 24 and I just had to have the root section done again to get rid of the rest of the root. It was painful and the problem never seems to be fixed. I still haven't got the crown, you CAN put that part off, it doesn't help the root, just the tooth, but a regular filling does the trick in a pinch. If I did it again, I would have just got the tooth pulled and gotten a bridge to fill in the empty space.

Answer 8

A root canal will cast you more $$ than if you have that tooth pulled, then you won't have to worry about anything lasting, either. As long as your other teeth are in place and don't need adjusting I would opt to pull your rotten tooth instead of a root canal, or worse yet, that crown.....

Just my suggestion, good luck to you and God Bless.....

Answer 9

Well, if you don't want to lose the tooth permenantly, it is worth it.
When you have a cavity, the decay is on the surface of the tooth. As the decay starts to work its way to the inside of the tooth, then you need a root canal. A root canal is when they will dig inside that decaying tooth and try to scrap out all the decay from the inside out. However, if they leave any decay inside the tooth, it will regenerate to more decay in time.
However, if you just let it go, the decay takes over the tooth and the tooth has become "dead" and must be removed.

Answer 10

I had two root canals done and yes its worth it if your tooth is badly decayed. If you get a good dentist they usually last for years. Because If you leave your decayed tooth as it is, it can cause all sorts of problems like a bad infection. If you choose not to get a tooth canal at least consider getting that tooth pulled for health reasons.