root canal treatments Archives

I had a tooth that had been recessed for years due to an accident. That had caused it to be darker than the other teeth. I was looking for a cheap way to fix this and my dentist suggested Crest Whitestrips. I wore it for a little over a week with no problems, but then started having pain in the recessed tooth. It began to have sensitivity to hot and cold. I stopped using the whitestrips but the pain didn’t stop. I went to see my dentist and he believes I need a root canal treatment. Could Crest Whitestrips have caused this? If so, should my dentist have warned me that this would be a possibility?

Caroline

Dear Caroline,

Professional Teeth Whitening Trays

When I first heard this question, I was surprised because, generally, Crest Whitestrips are so weak that it would be hard for them to do much damage. However, as I’ve thought about your situation and the damaged tooth, it is possible. If the tooth is recessed it is likely already irritated or has some exposed dentin. The whitening strips could have pushed that tooth over the edge.

I am a little surprised your dentist suggested the Crest Whitestrips for a couple of reasons. One, it is dangerous for a patient to have teeth whitening done without supervision from a professional who can keep an eye on things. Second, the type of discoloration you have is not from stains so teeth whitening is not the solution. Those two things combined make me wonder if your dentist has a clear understanding of how teeth whitening works.

As for whether or not you need a root canal treatment, that would be hard to diagnose over blog post. The sensitivity to cold doesn’t bother me too much, but the sensitivity to hot tells me that it may not be able to heal on its own. You are perfectly within your rights to get a second opinion from another dentist who can examine you. If you do, I would suggest getting it done by an endodontist. They are root canal specialists. After the pain in the tooth is taken care of, you will want to see an expert cosmetic dentist in order to get the discoloration dealt with. They can give you all your options after examining the tooth.

This blog is brought to you by East Cobb Dentist Dr. Cristi Cheek.

I am frustrated and worried after getting a full smile makeover of veneer crowns. He did twelve teeth on top and ten on the bottom. The temporary veneer crowns felt okay, but after the permanent ones went on, I started having problems. My dentist looked it over and said that on one of the teeth there’s an abscess and also has the nerves dying. He sent me to an endodontist to have the root canal done and that dentist found four more teeth that failed some kind of test and needed root canals too. My dentist told me there were no risks to this smile makeover so I’m really frustrated and confused. I went back and asked him about it and he said I was just unlucky and he’s never seen this happen. He’s offered to cover half the cost of the root canals, but I’m still out of a LOT of money here and I’m worried the rest of the teeth are going to have the same problem one by one. Have you heard of this happening before?

Elaine

Dear Elaine,

I’m a bit concerned by what I am hearing and I want to start by defining some terms. There are porcelain veneers and there are porcelain crowns, but there is not anything called veneer crowns. So, right off the bat, we need to figure out what you received. Based on the need for root canal treatments, I think you received dental crowns and NOT porcelain veneers. If your dentist told you he was giving you porcelain veneers, but gave you crowns, he could be in a lot of trouble. Here’s how to tell which you have.

Porcelain Veneers Versus Porcelain Crowns

Tooth preparation for dental crowns

With dental crowns, your teeth have to be ground down to nubs in order to fit the crown. You will notice it fits completely over your tooth and you’ll be able to feel them on the back of your teeth as well. This is a much more aggressive treatment and should not be used for a smile makeover unless there were extenuating circumstances that necessitated it. You didn’t mention anything that made me think you needed crowns rather than veneers.

Tooth preparation for porcelain veneers

With porcelain veneers, you do not need much tooth structure removed at all. Typically, a dentist will remove a few millimeters, about the depth of a fingernail. These cover the front of your teeth and hug the sides a little but will not be on the back of your teeth. It would be extraordinarily unusual for your teeth to need a root canal with a veneer.

I think your dentist gave you crowns. I also think he was too aggressive in the tooth preparation which is why the nerves are dying. My suspicion is he knows that as well because he offered to pay for a portion of the root canal treatments. I would press your dentist into paying for all the root canal treatments. This should not have happened.

This blog is brought to you by East Cobb Dentist Dr. Cristi Cheek.

Did Crest Whitestrips Damage This Woman’s Tooth?

Are Veneer Crowns a Thing?

Porcelain Veneers Versus Porcelain Crowns