what_is_thematrix

I've got to have a root canal and i'm wondering how much it's going to cost Im on the NHS though. Just wondered if anyone else has had one and how much it cost them?

LeighJ

Mine cost about £80 a year ago, still not f**kin right tho.

doorman

it's not the cost it's the ******* pain i'v had kickings tattoos bones snapped etc but that root canal **** is nasty.have it pulled out!!!!

LeighJ

Echo that doorman, took 10 trips to get mine sort of sorted. OUT WITH IT!

what_is_thematrix

Yeah, I've been warned it's gonna be EXTREMELY painful-i asked for anaesthetic (im a wuss) but they said i could have intravenous sedative. One of my nerves is becoming exposed and causing all kinds of probs. I'm brickin' it now because if the dentist ***** it up.......

what_is_thematrix

Oops forgot to ask, why do you say 'just have it out'? Its one of my back teeth i can't just have it out

ozzy

It can be painful, but not always. I've just had work done on one of mine. Took about 4 trips and I felt nothing.

Had 3 injections to numb the area around the tooth and when I did feel anything on the root, they just injected some more anesthetic into the tooth canal. It's just dripped onto the nerve, they don't actually inject directly into it.

My dentist heated up one of the instruments until it was red hot and sealed off the canal. It was a bit un-nerving with smoke and the smell of burning coming out of my mouth, but I couldn't feel a thing.

It sounds bad, but the only uncomfortable part was trying to keep my jaw open for so long.

Stefan

ScoobySnack

I had a root canal ages ago and it lasted 3 years then became infected.....

2 years ago I had it all out in one. Not sure what you call it, but its the lower tooth second from the back. Now no problems....

Sod RC



J

yoza

Ive had two root canal.

One in the back, and the other is my front tooth, which also needed to be capped. Work on both was uncomfortable, but not unbearable.

The Gougeing out of the pulp feels wierd, a bit like tinfoil on a filling. The actual nerve looks like a piece of snot.

My dentist explains what he is doing as he is doing it. He is quite humourous and puts me at ease. He will drill around and say things like,'****, that shouldnt of happened', and 'Oh my god look at that!', 'thats never happened before'. Really funny......not.

He told me that once you have had root canal the tooth goes brittle, and eventually breaks up.

Enjoy.....

Yoza

what_is_thematrix

EDITED: just found out

[Edited by what_is_thematrix - 1/23/2004 4:20:39 PM]

yoza

I think it is basically the removal of all the pulp, mush and nerve inside the husk of the tooth. But Im no dentist, although I do enjoy inflickting pain on people. So maybe I qualify..

yoza

Was I right?

LeighJ

Mine invloved drilling small hole in back of front tooth, removing nerve, hot thing up inside tooth, followed by screw like thing being twisted in, then PULLED OUT, many times, bleach like fluid dripping down throat for two days, more screw like thing, more bleach, more screw thing, then fill hole, off to the boozer for a jar or 6 as I'd been on that many anti biotics, couldn't drink for weeks.

Enjoy

yoza

Yeah, the screw thingie was what was used to scrape out all the pulp, lurrrvly.

what_is_thematrix

Oh God

Thanks alot Yoza made me feel so much better

C'mon somebody must have had a straightforward root canal-i'm terrified of the dentist as it is

DocJock

JayPSC

Had a root canal last week, completly painless - probably helped that the root was already dead though, bit weird seen the dentist shove inch long things down your tooth though. Going back on tues to get it crowned.

jay

yoza

This is a straight forward root canal......

DocJock is a dentist I believe, come on tell us the process, dont leave out any good bits.......

ozzy

Read mine above - that was straightfoward. A few injections to prevent any pain and keep your gob open for 30 mins.

They do scrape out the cr@p inside the canal, but you don't feel thing. My dentist used some tiny little sticks to do it. It's not like he's shoving a 6" screw in your gob.

Stefan

what_is_thematrix

Yeah ok. Its gotta be done i suppose..... anyway back to cost £100?? I thought it would be higher.

doorman

forgot to say that the tooth is now broken with a big hole down the center nice

SteveV-WRX

as above, had mine done late last year, most painfull thing was the needle going into the gum for the anesthetic.

find a nice dentist and you should have no probs!

S

what_is_thematrix

Well this new dentist i've seen about a root canal reminds me of Luigi out of Mario Brothers Can't understand a word he says, except 'Roooot Treatamant'
Me: you mean root canal?

Dentist-errm yes

yoza

£85 if I remember rightly, but I dont take much notice due to the fact that I claim it back from a 'penny in the pound' type set up Im in.

Just before I go.

When I had my back one done, inbetween tool changes I put my tongue into the hole he had made, **** me it felt huge, I was amazed.

I hate it when your mouth is full of spit and water and it settles at the back of your throat. Trapped between your tongue and your throat, and it just keeps filling up. You think **** me Im going to drown, but you try to ride it out, shall I swallow it or tell him to stop? OMG Im going to choke......help......help.

Oh yeah, and that unforgetable smell of burning decay you get when he starts drilling. Stays with you all week.

Why do they always finish off a drilling operation with a drill which feels like its got a rusty ballbearing on the end of it. The drill revs are dropped to 5 RPM, and its guarenteed to lock up. Oh how I love the dentists...

JFB

I have just been quoted £415 for a Crown and was told that crowns aren't covered by the NHS. Don't tell me a crown involves a root canal too?

Argh!

JB

what_is_thematrix

uh oh

Root canal surgery is usually carried out under local anaesthetic. The anaesthetic is given directly into the area around the tooth by an injection into the gum which numbs the area.

After the anaesthetic takes effect, the dentist will first open the tooth through the crown (the flat top part) of the tooth, so that the tooth chamber can be accessed. The tooth pulp is then removed. Pulp is removed when it has become too injured or diseased to repair itself and has died . If the pulp is not removed, an abscess may form, which can become very painful.

If the pulp is removed, the remaining canal will be cleaned and enlarged so that it can easily be filled. Sometimes, the dentist may put a small amount of medication in the cleaned canal, to prevent the area becoming infected again and clear up any remaining germs and bacteria.

The treatment will probably be carried out over two or three visits to the dentist and may take several hours overall. A temporary filling may be used between visits to protect the exposed tooth and you may also be given antibiotics to manage and prevent further infection.

Finally, the temporary filling is removed and the root canal is cleaned once again. A permanent filling is added and a crown is fitted to the tooth. A crown is made of metal (gold coloured) or porcelain (natural tooth coloured).

ozzy

The costs depend on the number of treatments. Mine took 3 x 30min visits and cost just under £80.

Stefan

Andy W STI

www.aae.org/rootcanals.html

Sheepsplitter

Funnily enough I had my root canal filling done day.
It was supposed to take about 1 hour, but turned out to be 1hr 50mins, because I had deep complicated canals.
Apparently normally it's about 20-21mm, but I had 23mm and a curve at the bottom of the canal, which makes it difficult to get the file around (titanium instruments enable this to work).

I had zero pain, didn't even bother with injection.
It was my last rear tooth on the bottom of the jaw.

The only issue is trying to keep your mouth open for so long without getting cramp. They put a steel brace thing in your mouth with a green sheet thing around it. This is to stop saliva getting in and makes it easier to work on.
The process is a lot more complicated than I first thought (even having read up on it), and my dentist took great care.
He's popped a temporary filling on top and I have to have a proper filling done in 2 weeks, then a possible crown later.
Todays work cost £267, which for nearly 2 hours work with the dentist and his assistance flat out seemd not too bad (included 3 x-rays, which he used to ensure the canal was completely drilled out and filled correctly).

All in all, not as bad as people say, by a big margin.
Makes your jaw tired though.

A small price to pay for a fixed tooth.