Pain relief after root canal - help!

[grinningghost]

Happy Easter guys! I'm wondering if anyone can tell me what to do for my after-root canal pain. It's Easter Sunday, so I'm kind of stuck. I had the root canal Wednesday, and it really didn't start getting painful until last night. If anyone has ANY suggestions, I'll take them. So far Aleve, Tylenol and Excedrin haven't done anything. It's mostly gum pain. Help!!!!

 

[Blondie]

Sounds like it might be infected.

I had a root canal done on a Wednesday, and by that Sunday I was in so much pain I had to page the Endodonist that did the procedure.

He phoned in an antibiotic and Lorcet Plus (a narcotic pain reliever that works wonders, trust me!)

If your pain is that bad, I'd page whoever did the root canal and let them know how much pain you're in.

Good luck, not all dentists/oral surgeons will phone in prescriptions.

 

[grinningghost]

Thanks Blondie. I'm currently taking amoxicillan, but maybe it's not working right. If this doesn't quit hurting within the next hour or two, Mr. Endodontist will have to take a break from his egg hunt and get me some serious pain killers.

 

[LuvN~Travel]

Gghost, I just recently had one too. My pain however was the two weeks before the root canal. I have a customer who is the office clerk of one of our local doctors. She had told me last year about taking two Aleve and two Tylenol, which was the same as one of the prescriptions meds. So, that was what I did for two weeks. And, it worked for me. You may have to experiment though for yourself, maybe starting on the conservative side, though. Good luck, and hopefully the docs can get you something tomorrow.
Kim

 

[chelsea&austinsmom]

It sounds like you have an infection. DH had root canal done on Wed. also and by Friday he was in so much pain and his mouth was swollen like a baseball. He called the dentist since they where closed for Good Friday. The dentist called and told him to meet him at the office. Sure enough he had an infection. The took out the temporary filling and gave him strong antibotics. He's finally feeling better today. He goes back Tuesday to finish the root canal. Best of luck to you and hope you feel better soon.

 

[MarkRG]

I have been spending a lot of time at the dentist lately myself so I have very direct experience. It is infected, the other posters are very right, you might need to go back in and have the temporary filling/crown drilled to relieve the infection and go back on antibiotics. At least that was what my dentist did to someone who came in with an emergency appt while he was doing fillings on me. Contact Mr. Endodontist immediately.

 

[Bunchkin]

One bourbon, one scotch and one beer.

 

[DaisyDebbie]

A few shots of Tequila would work too

I hate mouth pain. I've had 5 root canals done and had not pain after.

 

[one_cat]

Call your dentist. Most likely there is an after-hours on-call service. At the very least they can prescribe a pain-killer at a 24 hour pharmacy. At the most someone can see you immediately holiday or not. If for some reason there is no after-hours service, call your doctor. He could do the same thing though he won't be happy.

 

[dclwdwlover]

If it doesn't have a permanent filling scrape out the temporary filling (cavit) - you can use a safety pin or such - & then pull out the little cotton ball in it.
I use to work for a dentist, but more important I have had (embarassingly) 13 root canals done - the most recent being in December.
Make sure to let the dentist/endodontist know & make sure you get on an antibiotic if you're not on one.
Feel better.

 

[Sal]

I agree with dclwdwlover.

Many times, that pain is due to pressure building up and you will get fast relief from taking out the temp filling. This happened to my dad and he suffered several days out of town and got immediate relief when he took out the temp filling (on the advice of his dentist).

This is not a substitute for seeing the dentist asap, but might help you get through the night.

Good luck.

 

[grinningghost]

Thanks to everyone. You DISers are always a wealth of information. Why does everything tooth related happen on a Sunday or a holiday?

 

[grinningghost]

Desperation set in. I found some Tylenol #3's DD got when her wisdom teeth were pulled. I think I found the magic bullet. The pain has significantly dulled, as has my mind. I left a message on the dentist's answering machine to call me ASAP in the morning.

 

[Kitty 34]

Hope you're feeling better this morning. Not a fun way to spend Easter. {{{{{{{HUGS}}}}}}