Sunday, October 02, 2011

Should a wisdom tooth ever get root canal?

The answer is sometimes. If a wisdom tooth has a deep cavity and has a pulpal exposure it can be a good candidate for endodontic therapy if it has errupted in a cleanable position and is in good function. Like other posterior teeth, after having a root canal wisdom teeth should be crowned. In my practice I recommend full metal crowns for wisdom teeth(and second molars), since the chewing pressure they can experience can make porcelain breakage more likely when porcelain fused to metal is used.

If the wisdom tooth is not fully erupted or difficult for the patient to clean, then root canal is not the best option for dealing with a compromised pulp. Instead extraction is the best option. In this event, often the opposing wisdom tooth is extracted as well, since without an opposing tooth present, it may extrude over time.

23 comments:

  1. Wow it was bad enough to get a wisdom tooth out and now it's even possible to have to get a root canal? Praying that I'll never have to go through that haha.

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  2. Root canal is not best option and other idea?Sterling Heights Dentist

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  3. When decay extends to the pulp or the nerve inside the tooth, the person almost always experiences spontaneous throbbing pain. The pain increases at night and is aggravated with cold & sweet foods.

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  4. Hi,
    I have gone through root canal in the wisdom teeth lower jaw left side, two weeks back. Now I am still unable to gain my whole jaw movement left to right as earlier. If I force it, I feel pain and it seems something has clamped it at the left. Though my right to left movement is fine. The same issue is there with front and back movement. Will it recover automatically, or is this some issue due to root canal. Thanks for your reply.

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  5. Lawrence Spindel10:58 AM

    It sounds like keeping your mouth open for an extended period of time has caused a flare up of inflammation of your temporo mandibular joint capsule. It will most likely slowly improve over time, but it may take several months.

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  6. Will antibiotics clear up infection in a tooth that has previously had root canal?

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    1. While taking antibiotics may supress an infection, it will not cure it if the infection is because there is a problem with the tooth ( poor apical seal, unfilled canal, or fracture).

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  7. I have my wisdom tooth in left side of my upper jaw. However it is too sensitive to eat anything with it. I have asked two different dentists and they had different opinions on it. One said to extract it while another said to do root canal. I am not sure what is the best to do. I have the opposite tooth fine. I appreciate if you advise. I have all x-rays as well.

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  8. Sara, if the wisdom tooth is in a good position ( in the right position as opposed to sticking out into your cheek or partially submerged) the root canal is a perfectly fine option as long as you are willing to crown it afterwards.

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  9. Hi. At some point, a hole occurred in my wisdom tooth, upper left. Long story short, I think I know when it broke, but didn’t know that that’s what it was.

    I go to the dentist and he advised it would be best to extract it (a piece of it splintered). My mother suggested a second opinion.

    Is it worth getting the second opinion?

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  10. If the tooth is still restorable and it is in a good position in it's arch, than getting a second opinion maybe worthwhile.

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  11. I am 60 and have an impacted wisdom tooth that never erupted. It was not extracted due to surrounding nerves involved and I was told I could lose feeling in my jaw if nerves are damaged. I now have an infection aground it and upon examination, it appears the tooth has a decay. I have been recommended for oral surgery. Any suggestions?

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    1. They have 3D radiographs taken by cone beam machines. An X-ray series taken by one of these machines will show the position of the mandibular nerve relative to your impacted wisdom tooth. My Oral Surgeon has been performing a coronectomy procedure for patients with impacted wisdom teeth that he feels might have a higher risk of complications if removed completely. Instead he removes just the clinical crown of the wisdom tooth and leaves the rest intact. So far these procedures have been entirely successful for my patients without any complications.

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  12. I had my root canal done for lower right side wisdom tooth. It's been 4 sitting till today, still it hurts.
    How long will it take to heal.
    Can't bear the pain.

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  13. I had my root canal done for upper right wisdom Tooth, there was no pain but decay was started
    I went to Dr to extract it but he ended up doing root canal (with temporary filling), he said the inner part is fine & fixed and the tooth will come out itself
    I saw my x-ray wisdom tooth was a very little angular
    Should I chose a good option? Or should I have extracted my Tooth?
    Or is it necessary to get a crown on that Tooth?

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  14. Sir, I have pain on my lower left wisdom tooth, it won't let me chew anything, it is not impacted, but rct is done on it and I did not get a crown, there is no visible infection in X ray, doctor suggested extraction. I want to know about other options available, thanking you in anticipation..

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    Replies
    1. It depends on why it is hurting. If it's fractured, extraction may be the best solution. If the root canal is reinfected it may be possible to retreat it.

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  15. I just had a root canal on the upper left wisdom tooth when the decay was close to the root. Has been 2 days , it really hurts and there is no way I can chew on it. Taking anti biotic. Would the pain and discomfort go away?

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  16. If the bite is adjusted properly and the root canal was completed properly, usually any initial discomfort should go away over time.

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  17. Hi, I have a horizontal wisdom tooth at my lower left side. It has a cavity, imposing pressure on my other teeth and very difficult to clean, although it doesn't bother me. I had a CT scan and my doctor is saying that the tooth is laying on the nerve so that the extraction has the risk of paresthesia and she prefers performing a crowning and root canal. I asked many people and they all say it is not a goid option. Any idea?

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    1. Sometimes impacted wisdom teeth have a procedure called a coronectomy in which the clinical crown of the the wisdom tooth is removed but the remainder of the tooth is left in place. I am not sure if you are a candidate, but this procedure protects the mandibular nerve from a possible injury during an complete extraction.

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  18. I'm still terrified of getting wisdom teeth removed. I think there was still some traces of laughing gas left in you when you made this post.

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  19. Anonymous10:30 PM

    I have three wisdom tooth one recently started paining I guess there is a cavity or a slight opening that's why it hurts . Not always I don't want to get it extracted I think filling will do fine. Doctor said it's not infected that bad. The alignment is not that bad at all . I wanna do a root canal and a filling I don't wanna remove them is there a way please let me know

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