Dental Question (abcess)

[CrazedDisFan]

My dd, 8, has an abcessed baby tooth. I need some advice on what to ask the dentist on Monday, but first let me give you some back story...

In mid-November she developed her first cavity. I took her in and the dentist filled the tooth. At that time she said it may become infected and the tooth may need a baby root canal.

Fast forward to three days ago. DD says mom my tooth hurts. I see nothing wrong, dh sees nothing wrong. We watch her eat dinner and she goes about that just fine chewing on both sides of the mouth, not shying away from that achy tooth.

The next morning she says nothing of the tooth hurting. So we assume it was just a little weird occurance of it hurting. Last night she says, "Mommy, my tooth hurts again." I look and there is a white bulging spot on the inside of the gum and the outside. I gave her some tylenol for the achiness.

This morning the tooth still hurts, of course, and I called the emergency dentist number. The dentist called back and said it sounds like a fistula under the tooth. He called her in some amoxicillan for the infection and said call Monday morning for an appointment.

Now... here's the question... Should I insist they extract the tooth and not do the root canal? I mean it is a baby tooth that should fall out within the next year anyways. Or should I let them go ahead with the root canal and hope it works?

I am just worried that the root canal might not work and she'll have to endure yet another painful procedure. Any thoughts?

Dh has never had a cavity in his life and my teeth are in reasonable shape, so all this is new to us. Thank goodness for good dental insurance!

 

[lsyorke]

At 8 years old I wouldn't put a kid through a root canal for a baby tooth.

 

[poohandwendy]

If i were you, I would send Tiggersomom2 a pm, she works in a dental office and is highly knowledgeable about this stuff...

Like you, I guess I am wondering why try so hard to save a baby tooth on an 8 year old? Maybe because they are worried about spacing if the adult tooth isn't ready to come in? I dunno.

Maybe TM2 will see this and respond...

 

[HaleyB]

My 8 year old had this happen when she was 7. They can tell by x-ray about how long it will take the adult tooth to come in. In our cass they were guessing 2 years, so they gave us the choice of extraction and a spacer or root canal. We did the extraction because our insurance covered the spacer and not the root canal. The adult tooth is just starting to show through her gums and it has been 18 months.

 

[HaleyB]

Oh and I should add, I am glad we went that way. Having missing teeth in 2nd grade is 'cool' so it never bothered her and the spacer has worked perfectly.

Root canals do not always work, another reason we pulled that tooth. And the tooth fairy still collected it, even though it was not in perfect shape. I guess if you have an extraction she makes an exception.

 

[CrazedDisFan]

Thanks for the advice! I am so puzzled as to why it happened now oppose dto right after the filling, but heck I'm not surprised the way things have been going around here.

Our other dd, 11, is being so sweet to her. She won her sister a stuffed Pluto with bunny ears on and a basket in his mouth tonight out of one of those machines at the grocery store. She made her a feel better soon card and put it on the couch so she'll find it in the a.m.

 

[rascalmom]

Just read your post to dh - he agrees with your dentist. He is assuming by the "baby root canal" that the dentist is using a cutesy term for a pulpotomy, which is a most simplified form of root canal therapy. That procedure would be his first recommendation, & an extraction with a space maintainer would be the 2nd choice.

If this tooth is a molar, she may still have it for a few more years. The pulpotomy would allow the baby tooth to serve as a natural space maintainer & help prevent other problems as she grows.

Then again, if this tooth hasn't bothered her since the filling & the dentist hasn't seen her yet, hopefully they will find that it is not an abcess at all, but a cut or some food caught under the gumline that is making a sore.

Either way, I wouldn't worry too much about it. Your little one will be fine. The antibiotics should help & the pulpotomy is not as lengthy as a root canal. (By the way - the tooth fairy always paid a premium for extracted teeth at our house!)

 

[CrazedDisFan]

Just an update and thanks for the replies!

I took dd in this morning and the dentist pulled the tooth. They said they felt strongly that a baby root canal would not work. DD did quite well and is very impressed with her tooth's roots.

She goes back in 10 days for a mold and then a spacer. The dentist said the adult tooth wouldn't grow in for a year or so.