Root Canal a Month Ago - Pain/Swelling NOW!?

I had a root canal done on my back molar (#2)approximately a month ago. Because of a failed root canal on another molar, I decided to wait a while before putting crown on. Right after I had the RTC, I had some soreness on the gum around the area. I thought it might just be from the procedure. I did not have any other pain at the time. About a week ago I started experiencing more gum soreness and tonight my gums feel swollen and I am having pain and some throbbing in area. I will call endo first thing in morning. Is it possible to have infection/abscess in area AFTER a root canal? I am so tired of this problem. at this point I wish I had just had the thing pulled. But now I have to deal with it. Anyone had a something like this?

It's 11:00 pm where I am right now. My only alternative would be emergency room and that would be worse. Considering what I paid for this RTC, beating the endo does come to mind. Sorry to all professionals on site. It just stinks to have problems with yet another RTC molar.

It is possible that you have a gum infection in the area causing the problem. Another cause may have been a nerve canal called an accessory canal didn't get cleaned out and that is the culprit. The sinuses also sit on top of the upper molar teeth and it isn't impossible that you have a sinus infection that sometimes causes these types of symptoms.

You have the right idea to call the endodontist in the morning, they should see you right away. Pain medication such as Advil (or whatever you would take for a headache) should help and cool compresses. I think it is great that you are trying to save this tooth since it is so important for chewing, but sorry to hear you are having trouble...

Good luck
JAMRDH -a dental hygienist

...Go to the doctor/dentist?!

it's an infection...just get some antibiotics...it's always best to keep your own teeth..(crowns and all.)

When the root canal is done, the goal is to remove all of the nerve and blood supply (this tissue has died and become necrotic) If there are extra canals, they often can be very small and missed on the first go. Generally, the endodontist will attempt to find this extra canal to treat it. Good luck. It is a pain to have to pay for and endo and crown, but it is better to keep your tooth.

Go to the dentist now if possible. If not go tomorrow at the latest. It's an infection and can further damage the tooth. The desntist will drain it if needed and get you on antibiotics.
If you can't get to the dentist tonight and it hurts too much, take some ibuprophen and there are these ambasol swabs that you can get at the drug store that really help.
I mean it though, get to the destist ASAP, been there, done that.

I would beat the guy that did it. Just kidding . You need to go back asap and get that looked at.

i feel your pain... i had horrible tooth pain in a back molar last summer & ended up having to have a root canal... that didn't take care of the pain though... after many dentist visits i finally had the wisdom tooth directly behind the troublesome molar pulled. it helped, but i still have occasional pain. the pain you're experiencing could be due to an infection in the gum surrounding the tooth, or more bacteria could have gotten into your tooth since you didn't have the crown put on at first. it could also be what caused mine, another tooth is hitting it wrong when you bite down causing pressure and pain. try some ice and advil tonight... sidenote, if heat makes it feel worse and cold makes it feel better, then it's most likely an infection inside your tooth. good luck.

Hey, I'm experiencing the same problem. I had a root canal done last exactly a month ago, and last week I started to feel pain in the bottom part of the tooth, I believe it may be an infection since when I was checking my tooth I saw a black spot, something that look like the dentist left a part uncovered and food may have got into it. I hope it is not that and they can fix it tomorrow. But I guess the best advice is to go to the dentist as soon as possible. Make sure you don't have to pay for anything, it is suppose to be a follow up and if you are thinking of malpractice, you should go to another dentist get their opinion and sue because you are not suppose to feel pain from a root canal after one or two weeks (it may be that something went wrong with the procedure).
You have to be very careful because I know of a case of a woman who had a root canal done, she was feeling pain and went to the dentist too late, she had an infection that was spreading to her jaw and was so sore that she couldn't eat. So we have to be careful!!!
:D