Many people are afraid they'll have tooth pain after root canal therapy. However, because the source of infection is removed during the procedure, most people find immediate relief following treatment.
Some Minor Pain Is Normal After Root Canal Treatment
Soon, the discomfort will go away, but until then, you can take over-the-counter pain relievers like ibuprofen or acetaminophen. There are a few reasons that you may experience some pain even though the nerve of your tooth has been removed during root canal therapy.
Three to five days after your procedure, the pain should be gone. General discomfort around the tooth may last a few weeks and be most obvious when flossing, brushing, or eating. In limited cases patients may experience persistent post-operative discomfort.
Is This Normal? If you have recently had your root canal at Smillie Dental, a little bit of pain and discomfort is normal as you heal. Usually, this will be quite minor. Your tooth may feel sore and tender, and you should be able to mitigate the pain with over-the-counter medication like acetaminophen or naproxen.
The Most Common Root Canal Symptoms
One of the signs that you might be in need of a root canal is constant pain. This would be pain that is bothering you all of the time or goes away sometimes but still comes back.
In the popular imagination, a root canal is a painful, stressful, and uncomfortable procedure. But this is actually quite far from the truth. In reality, root canals are completely painless, and are actually the best way to get relief from the discomfort of a damaged, infected tooth.
When you get an x-ray, this will give definitive proof that you need to get a root canal. The x-ray gives the dentist a clear view of any infection in the tooth especially one at the root of the tooth.
The root canal procedure is completed in two separate visits to ensure that the tooth is thoroughly cleaned out, sealed up, and protected from further damage.
Antibiotics are not absolutely necessary after a root canal. After a root canal, you need very little time to recover, and post-operative care is the best way for fast healing. However, a dentist may recommend antibiotics before root canal to improve the chances of a successful outcome.
A root canal causes mild pain for a few days. The discomfort is temporary and is manageable with over-the-counter pain relievers and practicing proper oral hygiene. However, if the discomfort lasts over three days, you must see your dentist for advice.
During any root canal, body tissues not directly being treated have a chance to become agitated and mildly inflamed. In the case of throbbing pain after a root canal, the culprit is the bone surrounding the tooth. The bone tissue becomes irritated and provokes some discomfort. For most patients, this is very mild.
Tenderness or pain in the tooth when applying pressure, even after recovering from treatment. Swelling after recovery or pimple-like structures developing and leaking pus in the area. Temperature sensitivity, such as a quick, sharp pain after taking a sip of hot coffee or cold soda.
Don't bite directly onto the tooth you just got the procedure done either. Be sure to keep this up until all the tenderness is gone. In terms of foods to avoid, try to stay away from things that get stuck in your teeth. Avoid hot fluids and alcohol, and try not to drink anything from a straw.
Can I Brush My Teeth After a Root Canal? The short answer is yes! It's very rare that any dentist will instruct you to not brush your teeth after a dental procedure. Once the numbing medication has completely worn off, you are free to brush your teeth as you normally would.
The need for a crown is typically determined by the amount of remaining tooth structure after a root canal. Generally, if more than half of the tooth is gone, a crown is indicated to restore the tooth's structural integrity.
In most cases, patients require only a few days to recover from a root canal procedure. After the procedure, the patient may feel some irritation or soreness for the first 24 to 48 hours. To manage this pain and soreness, your dentist will prescribe over-the-counter pain medication.
Do you have an upcoming root canal procedure? If so, you probably have some questions. One of the most common questions we are asked is when a person can resume normal activities like work or school after their treatment. In most cases, patients can return to work or school the day after their procedure.
Most patients recover after a few days or so. In some cases, patients go through complications. These patients may take one to two weeks to heal. Any pain or swelling that pain medication cannot relieve will need treatment from the dentist or a doctor.
Is the second visit for a root canal painful? Not at all. During this visit, you have just completed a course of antibiotics, and your dentist has removed most of the infection within the tooth structure.
Typically, a root canal becomes necessary as the result of a severe infection. This can be caused either by trauma to the tooth or by an untreated cavity. Often, the nerve in the tooth has become impacted by this point which can cause extreme pain.
Severe tooth infection can pose a serious threat to your oral health when it's left untreated. The root canal connected to your tooth's pulp travels into the root's socket within your jawbone. In extreme cases, decay can travel through the canal and lead to increasingly more serious oral health infection.
Temperature Sensitivity
A new sensitivity to hot or cold temperatures, though, may be the only signal that a tooth needs a root canal. Some people experience only minor discomfort, while others have severe pain when biting into a hot pizza or drinking a glass of iced tea.
How to know if you need a root canal? Endodontic treatment is necessary when the pulp, the soft tissue inside the root canal, becomes inflamed or infected. The inflammation or infection can have a variety of causes: deep decay repeated dental procedures on the tooth or a crack or chip in the tooth.
Because you will be fully numb during treatment, it is unlikely that you will experience pain. The primary sensation most patients feel is pressure as the tooth root cavity is cleaned.