Six weeks ago I had 3 crowns put onto my back molars...1 on bottom left, no issues. The 2 on the bottom right are SUPER sensitive and hurt. My dmd rechecked bite, made adjustments and told me to wait a few weeks...let things settle down. They still hurt. NOW, I have additional symptoms, all on the right side: the adjacent teeth hurt, my upper teeth & molars hurt, my teeth have shifted causing my 1 front tooth to become loose and has pain. The RIGHT side, and only right side of my head hurts BAD. Cranial pain: eye socket, ear/jaw, forehead, skull, lower skull. WHAT COULD BE GOING ON? The dmd recommends invisalign to straighten the shift, and root canal to kill sensitivity even tho xrays show root is fine. I'm ok with the invisalign only, but why do I have this severe pain on right side ONLY AFTER crowns were put in? I'm living on ibuprofen for pain, 800mg every 6 hrs. Any ideas or suggestions? Thank you.
Molar crowns = FACIAL & CRANIAL PAIN
- Thread starter MarinShar
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I can't believe your dentist is suggesting orthodontics. I hope you have a record of your bite before the crowns. It's your bite that has gone out of alignment. You need it adjusted by someone who knows what they are doing with a lab analysis of the bite before and after. The sensitivity should go down when the bite is corrected. The adjustments should only be on the new dental work not on the existing teeth. If the root is fine do not have a root canal at this stage. These things can be fixed but it takes time and patience with the right dentist.
MattKW
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Adjusting the bite is illogical. Remove crowns, replace with temporary crowns cemented with calmative ZnO-eugenol paste until this settles, then remake crowns and cement one at a time. Don't start RCTs. If your dentist doesn't want to do this, then get 2nd opinion elsewhere.
Thank you for your reply.
That is the best approach Matt, but many dentists will refuse to change the crowns and wait for the bite to settle with temps. The current view of many dentists is that it's better to leave things as they are (even though a patient is distressed). than to change and make them worse. It depends on what country you are in. They seem more likely to do something in the US. In the UK saying to a dentist that you've had a bite adjustment go wrong is pretty much like saying you have the plague...
MattKW
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MarinShar should consider putting this possibility to the dentist, or raise the prospect of lodging a complaint, or seeking a 2nd opinion with full access to copies of the records (preferably a prosthodontist). That's universal rights in UK, USA,...
It's not a bite adjustment gone wrong, it appears more related to the crowns which will be hard to sort out when so much has been done in one session. Maybe they were overprepped, maybe they were poorly constructed, maybe the occlusion IS wrong. So much I can't tell from a limited description, but there are avenues open to MarinShar to explore in real life rather than in a forum.
It's not a bite adjustment gone wrong, it appears more related to the crowns which will be hard to sort out when so much has been done in one session. Maybe they were overprepped, maybe they were poorly constructed, maybe the occlusion IS wrong. So much I can't tell from a limited description, but there are avenues open to MarinShar to explore in real life rather than in a forum.
In the UK it's very difficult to resolve via such avenues MattKW. It should work but it's become far more difficult in recent years. Many dentists fear criticising the work of another. Perhaps there is fear of litigation. Anything affecting the bite is put in the too complex box. This may be a case of crowns gone wrong but it will be put into that box by most dentists here. Perhaps it is easier in the US. But in the UK it's a conservative merry-go-around in hell. They will refer you to pain management rather than touch the teeth.
MattKW
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Yes, but you do have a Dental Council I think? And the dentists are insured for professional indemnity. So, if a patient complains to a dentist, the first step the dentist should be doing is to contact their insurer; the insurer will nearly always cover costs of failed treatment.
But if the OP doesn't feel encouraged to ask, they won't make any progress; a lack of suggestions is not helping the OP. I would encourage the OP to talk to the dentist about referral to a prosthodontist, or threaten to lodge a Dental Council complaint. A prothodontist assessment is the natural step before trying other therapy that might only muddy the waters like Invisalign (crazy!), or a pain clinic (also crazy at this point).
But if the OP doesn't feel encouraged to ask, they won't make any progress; a lack of suggestions is not helping the OP. I would encourage the OP to talk to the dentist about referral to a prosthodontist, or threaten to lodge a Dental Council complaint. A prothodontist assessment is the natural step before trying other therapy that might only muddy the waters like Invisalign (crazy!), or a pain clinic (also crazy at this point).
The General Dental council isn't really effective in resolving complaints. Their main objective is to ensure dentists do not break their own rules of professional conduct and bigger cases of malpractice, where a number of patients have been seriously harmed. So an individual case of problems with crowns isn't their priority. Also many dentists are a mix of NHS and private. There is a grey area as to which part you have been treated under. There are different complaint routes but they are not fit for purpose. It's very difficult to complain in the private sector because dentists often protect one another. I'm not saying it's not possible, but it is difficult here. You must have seen some of the posts by patients in the UK not knowing where to turn. What you suggested in your original post Matt is a great solution but finding a dentist in the UK who will do that is challenging. I hope this patient finds resolution.