Tooth Pain after Root Canal Treatment: What to Expect

Dental pain before, during as well as after a dental procedure is one of the main reasons why people dread visiting the dentist. The fear is twice as much, especially when it comes to a root canal. However, there is no reason to fear visiting the dentist anymore since dental procedures have improved over the years.

• Why Would My Tooth Hurt After Root Canal?

A root canal is a major dental procedure; therefore, it is quite normal that it will be associated with some level of pain and discomfort. The procedure involves deep cleaning inside the inner root chamber of the tooth, and thus there are a couple of reasons why it might irritate.

First, while cleaning the pulp, the area is filled with a lot of nerves and sensitive tissues. This can become inflamed, swollen, and irritated after the treatment and thus cause some discomfort.

Additionally, the dentist uses sharp dental instruments to clean the pulp. It is possible for some trauma to occur to the surrounding tissues and cause discomfort.

However, you do not need to worry since the pain will not last forever. Actually, root canal therapy is meant to help you from severe pain that may occur due to a fractured or decayed tooth.

It is normal to experience some moderate pain, but this can be controlled using over-the-counter drugs.

• Initial Pain Recovery

Traditionally, root canal therapy was very painful, and that is the reason why people avoided the procedure. However, due to the advancement of dental technology, dentists have a myriad of pain-relieving measures that reduce your discomfort.

Before your dentist can commence the procedure, he will apply local anesthesia that will help minimize your pain. During the procedure, you will still feel some pressure, but it will not be associated with any pain.

After the procedure, the local anesthesia will begin to wear off, and this is when you might experience some sensitivity and mild pain. This is due to the openings your dentist made during the procedure to clean the pulp chamber. The pain should only last for a few days.

Over-the-counter drugs such as acetaminophen and ibuprofen will come in handy since the pain is usually mild. You should also avoid chewing on hard and hot food after the procedure.

• When to Seek Medical Attention

So, when should you start to worry after a root canal pain and discomfort? Well, if you experience some severe, sharp pain or the pain has persisted for more than one week, it means you need to seek medical attention from your dentist.

Severe pain means that it is likely that the initial infection was not properly cleaned. This mostly happens if the infection is not noticed during the cleaning process. However, root canal procedure has a very high success rate, and such occurrences are very rare.

• Bottom Line

Pain is an indication that something is not right in your body; therefore, you need to seek medical attention. If you experience pain and discomfort in your teeth, visit us at Springvale Dental Clinic, your tooth might be requiring some root canal. We use laser dentistry in our clinic, a technology that is non-invasive and painless.

Visit us today!