Gluesticks

What Root Canal and Crown treatment is available on the NHS?

After having a very deep filling around the nerve of a molar tooth (bottom set second from the back) 2 months ago it has become very painful and i now have some swelling in my cheek/gum tissue. My dentist has told me that although Root Canal Treatment is available on the NHS it would not work well in this case and is likely to become re-infected. This is due to a more complex root system in molar teeth and their awkward position making it difficult to clean the bacteria from the small root canals. Also use of a cold rubber filling solution does not give good adhesion to the canal wall and means it is hard to fill to the ends of the roots which may leave spaces that can then become infected. With specialist treatment the risk of bacterial infection would be reduced by using a hot liquid rubber filling solution which can get to the ends of the roots. This requires the use of specialist equipment (hot melt glue gun I thought) and demands a special price £450. A crown would then be put on top in a separate treatment which is metal on the NHS. White available privately £250. So it seems that in this case it is impossible to get adequate RTC treatment on the NHS! Has anyone got any counter information?

Public Comments

1. It is neary always possible to preform RCT on lower molar teeth. They have 3 canals and the only reason i no of where it is impossible is if the roots are very curved or they have resorbed.
2. It is very true that the hot gp (rubber filling) does fill the canals better, but there is no reason if done properly that the rct treatment on the nhs wouldn't work, i work in an nhs dentist and seen many done, and many working ok there is a chance that it could fail, but that is not in every case, for a molar tooth there is no way that would be done on the nhs, it would be a gold crown, where in most cases also work fairly well. As for a glue gun that's just in your mind they actually heat the gp point up in a hot oven, many nhs dentists also have these mines do, and we use them on our nhs patients as well as our private patients, but again that is all down to dentist. Good-luck with what ever decision you make, keep in mind that although the hot gps are good, they don't in all cases work either..