Pain After Root Canal?

I had a root canal on my front tooth 3 weeks ago following pain for about 3 weeks. I went back after 2 weeks for the temporary filling to be taken out but my dentist said he would have to put another temp filling in, presumably due to it still being infected. He flushed it out then put paper strip things up the canal this was very painful like it had hit the nerve (even though its not meant to be there) he said he was getting close to the bone thats why it hurt? I wouldnt think bone would hurt if touched?? anyway he put another temp filling on it and I have to go back again next week. Problem is iv still got a lot of pain in the tooth even though theres no nerve in it! It will be my 5th visit to the dentist for this problem next week and im sick of it! Its not like I can walk into another NHS dentist to get a second opinion, id have to pay and go private. Does anyone have any suggestions as to why im still in pain? He said i didnt need antibiotics.

Uh oh -- you NEED to see another dentist. Sounds like the first one is not quite up to (professional) snuff!!!!

Pain in the mouth LONG after a Root canal is not normal-- I've had THREE (in one month!!!) and I NEVER had that much pain!!

You could be setting yourself up for a BAD infection and may have JAW problems if that pain is not attended to IMMEDIATELY!!!

Please go to another dentist. If it is something serious, you have a case against the first dentist and possibly might be able to get HIM to pay the bill for the SECOND dentist too!

i think you have to change your dentist.you shouldnt have pain after root canal.

Everybody is diffrent but sometimes if you have had an abcess or infection in the tooth it can take a while for the tooth to calm down & get back to normal. avoid biting on the tooth as it is hollow & it could break.
But your obviously in pain so go & see your dentist even if it takes another 5 visits, you need to get it sorted.

could be inflammation- it's quite an 'aggressive' procedure, the bone could still be hurting- infection takes up space that isn't really there if you KWIM. Though you may still need antibiotics- keep taking anti inflammatories for the moment. hope it better soon

i had a tooth out recently and was in agony i also went back to dentist and he said it was bone exposure and that bone touched or exposed was extremely painful. Once your infection has gone the tooth will be filled or capped. Good luck

Use your best judgement. Are you in enough pain that you feel the need to go to another dentist? A second opinion might cost you, but they usually allow you to make payments if you can't afford the bill. At 3 weeks, if the pain is severe, I would think the extra $ would be worth it. I had prolonged pain with my root canals. Mine were my back teeth on the bottom jaw. If this is your case also, I was told the lower jaw root canals cause more intense pain because of all the nerves twisted around throughout your jaw. I had to go back for a refill in vicodan, but it was not infected. Good luck!

FREESPIRIT,
WHEN THE DENTIST INSERTS PAPER POINTS INTO THE CLEANED ROOT CANAL, HE'S TESTING WHETHER OR NOT THE CANAL IS FULLY CLEANED TO THE CORRECT LENGTH. SOMETIMES THE PAPER POINTS GO PAST THE APEX OF THE ROOT AND TOUCH THE BONE. IN THIS CASE PAIN IS FELT EVEN THOUGH THERE IS NO NERVE THERE. THERE MAY BE A LOCALIZED INFECTION THAT HAS FURTHER AGGRAVATED THE ORIGINAL SITUATION. ANTIBIOTICS ARE INDICATED.
THIS SHOULD HAVE BEEN FILLED IN 1 VISIT. THE FACT THAT IT'S BEEN 5 TIMES LEADS ME TO BELIEVE THAT A PRIVATE ENDODONTIST SHOULD BE SEEN AT THIS POINT. SOMETIMES IT'S WORTH IT TO PAY. REMEMBER, YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR.

when you have root canal, your dentist should have given you a course of antibiotics as a matter of course, when there are poking around in the lining of your cavity it is causing friction in the cavity (a bit like your foot rubbing in a new shoe) there fore causing you to have an apses in the lining if i was you i would go back and insist that they give you a weeks course of antibiotics, because if you do get an infection in your canal you will know about it , take it from some one who knows i ended up in hospital for 3days on a drip

Root canals get infected. It's a dead tooth rotting in your mouth. Too many temps take away alot of the tooth, so try to get a permanent as soon as it is safe. If the bone is infected they have to take out parts of the jawbone where the infection is. It's not that bad, but if it doesn't heal they remove the tooth and use the gum to heal over the surgery.

The pain should not be there. I would ask specficially why and get it addressed. If it moves into the jawbone, you will probably lose the tooth.