I have a cracked molar, and the dentist says I need a root canal. I’m getting one on Tuesday. What should I expect?
A big bill 
Mine last spring was @$2000 for the root canal and the crown. I don’t have insurance, so that really sucked. Get the gas and you won’t care. I strongly dislike root canals, but other people say they are no big deal. I had some pain for two days after, stock up on Advil (that takes care of it for me). Gas+novacaine+headphones=zone out. Good luck! 
It’s no big deal. Really.
I’ve always had near perfect teeth, so when my dentist told me I needed a root canal , I was not at all a happy camper. Everything I’d ever heard warned me that this was gonna be painful. Me, I dont like pain. And the sight of blood makes me squeam. (hey, if there’s an adjective “squeamish”, then there oughtta be a verb, too)
Bottom line–a root canal is just like any other dental procedure, except they stick this very uncomfortable rubber dam in your mouth while they work. The anesthetic works , so you cant feel anything at all in your teeth while they work on you. When you go home, it may help to take an aspirin, but the residual pain is no worse than a headache, and fades in a couple hours.
Is anyone else hearing C.J. Cregg from the episode of West Wing where she had an emergency root canal, and went back to the office before the novocaine wore off?
“I haw woot cawal. WOOT CAWAL!”
(Sorry, Johnny: I’m sure you won’t find the procedure very funny, but this immediately came to mind when I read the thread title … so, of course, I had to post it. :))
You’ll get a big bill. There is no pain involved with the actual procedure. The BILL is what’ll bring you to your knees! If you have decent insurance, it’ll cover it and you’ll just have the co-pay to deal with. Our daughter had a root canal last year. No pain. The only thing that made her uncomfortable was the dentist ‘singing along’ to the music he played in the office. I’ve had 2 root canals, and experienced no pain at all with either one. Good luck to you! You’ll do fine.
I had a root canal several years ago, and believe me, it was more pleasant than the problem that caused me to need it. (painful abcess). I don’t remember it hurting very much, during or after. At the time, my dental plan was good and I don’t even remember what it cost me. Now, I don’t know…every year, my insurance covers less and less.
I had one years ago. Once you are numb, they drilla big hole in the tooth. Then they clean it out. Then they put silly putty (or something similar) in it. After my anesthetic wore off,there was NO pain at all, but thats just me. Then you go back and they put a crown on that tooth. You will not have any more feeling in that tooth, even if starts to go bad.
I’ve had 5. Gah.
If they offer you the gas, TAKE IT FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS HOLY. And like most people said you won’t be in any pain. The discomfort I’ve felt following the procedures has been more from the points of novacaine injection and from the clamp that’s put around the tooth to hold the rubber dam in place. You just feel kinda tender from being worked on but once that nerve is dead and gone, it’s fiiiine.
To expand on Good Egg’s description, they have to clean out the roots. They’ll use these little bitty files to do it and then probably take an x-ray while the files are in to see if they’ve cleaned all the way down. The only way to describe the experience of the filing is woodging. Say it out aloud. Woodge, woodge, woodge. My sister had a root canal and afterward she said “yup, that was definitely woodging.”
Insurance? In the United States?
BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!
Unemployed people don’t get insurance. :mad:
In that case, you might want to try getting a second opinion. Years ago, when I’d just finished a university program and didn’t have a job yet, I went to a dentist with a toothache. He told me that he could just write me a prescription for a few bucks worth of antibiotics and painkillers, but what I really needed was an expensive root canal. Not having any dental insurance or much money at the time, I told him to give me the prescription. The pain went away, and not one of the several dentists I’ve gone to since has mentioned anything about me needing a root canal. Hmmm…
Don’t feel bad- I have insurance and still couldn’t afford root canal on a molar. It was something like $600 copay for the canal itself, then another 5 or 6 hundred for the crown that had to go on top of it.
Did they mention if they have to do a crown or not? I’d find that out before you let them do the root canal. If they have to crown it, it may be better to pull it if you can’t see it. You’re talking serious coin.
YMMV
In my experience, the worst thing was the freakin’ rubber dam and the clamp used to hold it in place, and the second worst thing was all the novocaine shots. I had mine done in a two-step process. After the first appointment, which incidentally was far longer than the second, the tooth felt sore, but more in an annoying way than an actual painful way. Taking painkillers before bed, and chewing on the other side of my mouth for a few days, kept the soreness within bearable limits. After the second appointment, absolutely nothing, other than a sore in the corner of my mouth where the spit sucker had rubbed a bit.
Best of luck to you - it’s not a pleasant experience but I’ve been through much worse. And I’m saying this as someone who hates having her teeth worked on.
You had to bring that up, didn’t you?
Johnny LA, don’t read this part.
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This is why I despise root canals. I know exactly what they are doing to my roots and it creeps me out beyond words. With novacaine and gas I may not be feeling any pain, but the knowledge and sounds are worse and I would welcome pain over that. I get extremely uncomfortable during this part…if I didn’t have the gas I am sure I would bolt from the chair. So maybe no pain, but extreme discomfort. Hate, hate, hate it.
I’ve had one root canal, and I’m not doing it again without the happy gas. I had to get about 6 shots (I lost count after a while), because my tooth just wouldn’t get numb enough. I hate getting shot with those big metal horse needles. That’s just torture for me. And I had to sit around for a while after each shot, waiting for it to get numb. The shots were really worse than the root canal–once I was numb, it wasn’t so bad. So next time, I want gas! And a lollipop when it’s all over.
I had one a few months ago. The only issue was that the infection that caused the problem in the first place. It was resistant to antibiotics (something I suspected before he did the root canal – two courses of amoxicilin and it was still uncomfrotable) and was agony. I too amoxicilin a third time, but when he checked it out for the permanent filling, there were still signs of infection. Clindamycin knocked it out and I’ve been fine since.
I’d say that my case was unusual. In any case, the cost was only about $650 so far (I get the permanent filling in October). The actual root canal was painless – they give me plenty of novacaine.
I’ve had 5. All were covered totally by my dental insurance, and every one was totally painless. I’d rather have a root canal than sit through a faculty meeting.
Many EMPLOYED people dont’ get dental insurance nowadays, and the insurance they do get doesn’t cover much.
I just finished a 4 step root canal and crown about 2 weeks ago. $1700.00. I got a rx for vicodin before the process began.
Visit one- shot to numb half of face and tooth opened, cleaned, packed (with clove) and a temporary filling placed. The only pain I had was an aching jaw and sore gum for which I took an occasional vicodin or motrin.
Visit two- no shot to numb face needed- tooth cavity recleaned and packed with permanant filler. This one became painful in the jaw area a day or two after the procedure but the vicodin covered it nicely until it went away.
Visit three- prepped the tooth for a permanant crown and placed a temporary crown. This one was time consuming because of all the filing needed to seat the crown(s). Sawed tooth smells bad, but it was painless.
Visit four- placement of the new crown. Some fiddling and filing needed for a perfect fit, but painless and the shortest visit.
I love my new tooth!
I’ve had two.
In the first, the tooth was dead, deader than a doornail. I slept through part of the root canal (not because they put me out, but because I was tired). The anesthesic worked. I was fine. Canal done.
The second, the tooth was dying, so it hurt. It hurt a whole hell of a lot. They said I needed a root canal, and that hurt. It was awful. The novacaine wasn’t doing it, so it kept hurting. It took a good deal of work and pain for that thing to finally calm down.
I agree with the second opinion thing. The dentist who did the root canals wasn’t the first dentist I saw - the first said I needed multiple. And several cavities filled. And lucky for me, here was a payment plan with only 20-something% interest. The second guy (who has much better qualifications, and is nicer, too), did say I needed some, but a lot less work done. Make sure the dentist isn’t trying to re-decorate his office with your teeth.
I had a root canal +crown nearly 18yrs ago, and recently dentist’s exray indicates an infection, and his options were:
#1 treatment w/antibiotics after going back in and having a “look see” and applying direct meds into the site plus antibio pills, the success rate is 75%, COST is $4,300.00 does NOT include anesthesia during treatment.
#2 Implant which would take up to 6 months total treatment, the success rate is 95% COST is $5,400.00 does NOT include anesthesia for multiple treatments throughout 6 month course.
I haven’t decided… maybe i should get another opinion… maybe i should just shoot the guy!!!