Dental patients are often surprised when they experience discomfort following a root canal because, once completed, no living tissue remains inside the tooth. Given this, how could the tooth cause any distress?
One of the most common causes of root canal pain or tooth pain is inflammation, which can be caused by the procedure itself or because the infection caused the tooth ligament to become swollen.
A common source of tooth pain after root canal is the nerve endings within the ligaments that attach the tooth to the jawbone. Although the tooth itself is “dead,” the nerve endings are not. Thankfully, this nerve pain usually passes within a few days after the root canal.
Another cause of dental pain following a root canal can be a poor “bite.” If a patient bites down (with nothing in the mouth, such as food), and the tooth in which a root canal was performed is painful, the bite must be corrected.
Of course, there can always be root canal complications. One is a broken file in the root canal. If that happens, most of the time the provider can complete the root canal with a piece of the file in the tooth canal. All files are sterile before treatment.
Finally, two other causes of pain post-root canal are infection or a fracture of the root. Antibiotics can address a persistent infection, but a fracture of the tooth and/or the tooth root often leads to extraction of that tooth.
Here at iSmile, we have root canal specialists in the Financial District of New York City. Please let us know if you need an exam or have any questions related to root canals.