I'm not a dental professional; I'm just a patient who's had a few root
canals and crowns.  My root-canalled teeth have always had sensitivity,
often for quite some time after the procedure.  As far as I can tell,
the reason for this is a certain degree of irritation/inflammation of
the gum tissue around the roots of the tooth.  In my experiences it has
taken anywhere from several weeks to over six months to resolve -- but
it always has gone away in the end.  The tooth never simply hurt or
throbbed when I wasn't touching it, but was often sensitive to a
sideways tap or to chewing, as you said.  I'm not so sure about cold
sensitivity, not (luckily) having any recent root canals at the moment!
With x-rays that show nothing wrong, I would personally get the crown
cemented.  But a word of warning -- DEFINITELY get the tooth numbed
before they do the cementing!  Cementing a crown on a tooth with that
kind of sensitivity without anaesthesia is awfully painful.

Hi Jim,
If your endo thinks it is ok, then hopefully it is ok. Here is a
similar question, however it sounds like the pain this patient felt was
slightly worse your pain.

http://www.dental--health.com/rootcanals2.html

Good luck,

Sue (nondentist)

I had two root canals about three years ago, and they've been a little
sensitive to pressure, flossing and brushing ever since.

The endodontist mentioned doing an apicoectomy if it got worse, but it
never did, so I've been ignoring it.  I guess it's never going to get
better, though...  Like I said, it's been three years.  (A little over
three years, actually.)

i had the same problem years ago.  they did exactly that procedure.  in
fact, it hurt on it's own, too.  they gave me antibiotics, so
apparently (and this is what i suspected) there was an aerobic
infection in it.  later on, the root canal caused a cavitation, as all
root canals eventually do.  those r then, anaerobic bacteria.  anyway,
we pull root canals nearly every day.  it is the only solution.  below,
see a patient's problem w/ a root canal.  for more info also see:
http://www.bikerchick.freehomepage.com/custom2.html

Torrie
here is an email b/t a patient and i on their root canal:
THE FOLLOWING IS AN EMAIL CORRESPONDENCE THAT I THOUGHT MITE HELP SOME
OF U
Torrie

Sent: Saturday, January 21, 2006 Subject: Re: unreachable canals

Dear Dr. Morales,

I just underwent root canal therapy on a rear, lower molar. Prior to
treatment I had experienced acute pain in that tooth as well as the jaw
underneath for a number of days. Penicillin had been prescribed (which
didn't seem to have a noticeable beneficial effect) and on the third
day of penicillin therapy, the root canal procedure was completed. The
tooth was hemoragic (not sure of spelling) in that liquid escaped from
the tooth as soon as the hole was made in the crown. At the end of the
procedure, the endodondist let me know that there are many lateral
canals that he couldn't reach and that therefore he was not totally
optimistic this time that there will be a successful result. I have
another day of antibiotics left and intend to take them (total was 25
(500 mg.) PVK pills for this past week). This was the first time that
he had mentioned to me about lateral canals. Do all molars have such
lateral canals? Do you have any recommendations? Thank you.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

they can. george menig wrote the root canal cover-up. i have spoken to
him personally. this is what he has to say about lateral canals:

...I was brought up was to know that if the patient had a good looking
root canal, but was having a health problem afterwards, and
particularly if you're not having any symptoms in the tooth, that you
should suspect that the infection was coming from what are known as the
lateral canals. These are accessory canals that come from the root of
the tooth, not right at the end of the root of the tooth, and these do
not show up on X-ray pictures, they are not easy to see, and it's
impossible to treat them properly. Why so many endodontists today are
assuring patients that there's nothing wrong - they've got to know that
those accessory canals can become infected - and the only reason I can
think is that they're afraid that they're going to be criticized for
doing the root canal and it didn't work and maybe the patient might
want their money back or that maybe they might get sued or something
like that because so many of them today are telling the patient there's
absolutely nothing wrong, maybe you'd better go see a psychiatrist.
http://www.mizar5.com/LauraLeeshow.htm

the only thing we do w/ root canals is pull the tooth; it is all that
can b done in order to b healthy. Torrie, Consultant

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dear Torrie,

Thank you for your timely response. Would you recommend extending the
Penicillin therapy for another week in order to fight whatever
infection may still be in the lateral canals? Would the additional
penicillin likely have a beneficial effect?

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

well, a better choice would prolly b a broad-spectrum antibiotic, but
if u get results from the penicillin, u could take it. i would follow
your dr's advice on it, since he gave it to u. typically, what they do
is do the root canal over again until the person stops complaining of
pain. i know because i have been thru this and so has my dad.
eventually, u end up spending over $2,000 on one tooth and r still
having problems. it sounds as tho u have an aerobic infection, which
has to b treated by antibiotics (or pull the tooth and clean out the
cavitation). the latter will cure it, the antibiotics will mask the
real over-all problem. when dentists cannot get the infection out, they
will put in a drainage tube and sometimes make hole inside the gum
where they can go in and access it whenever they need to drain off
infection. getting them to solve the problem and pull the tooth, is
like, well, pulling teeth, so as to speak. often, they stick a crown on
it, making it worse and spending more of your money. some ppl end up w/
both an aerobic(needs oxygen) infection and anaerobic(needs oxygen-free
envionment). usually, it is the former which causes the most pain and
infection we can drain easily, but anaerobic ones can do this as well.

ok, let's go over the root canal process. u have to get rid of the
mentality that dentists impose on us, that root canals r a normal
natural medical procedure w/ scientific studies to support it. it is
actually the opposite. it is pretty easy to conceive that if u have a
broken bone, that u go to the dr, he sets it, the bone grows back
together and heals. it has all the nutrients and oxygen from the blood
to do so. ok, so we take this tooth, we take some of the roots out,
only 1/3 of what it actually has, but enough to kill it. so, it no
longer has any life support. and, it is, in fact, the only place in the
body drs will keep something dead that once was alive. for one, let's
look at how an extraction heals. if the dentist (mainly, only biologic
dentists r taught to do this) takes out the periodontal ligament, the
bone on one side tries to reach the bone on the other side. it uses the
nutrients and oxygen in the blood in order to do this. but, w/ a root
canaled tooth, we have shoved gutta percha in there, making this
healing impossible. on top of that, scientifically, in every case, when
a living thing dies, there is bacteria. these anaerobic bacteria need a
place to go. the dentists tell u that they seal all the roots so no
bacteria can get into the body. for one, there r 3 miles of roots (the
2/3 of roots left behind after a root canal) in a tooth and they cannot
possibly seal all of them because they r far too small for bicalyx
(formerly called endocal). also, some dentists use Calcium Hydroxide
dressings. i would not want that stuff in me, see
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/002910.htm .  they try
to kill the bacteria, but the bacteria r going to win in the end. what
happens is, when a root canal is done and we use antibiotics or the
other methods used to try and curtail the leaching of this bacteria
into the jaw, the body is also helping us kill those bacteria by
launching an immune response. well, this is not good. u want your
immune system concentrating on protecting u against other illnesses
rather than an infection, caused by a dr, that is unnecessary and
unscientific. but, this is the most important aspect of a root canal;
it is what keeps dentists doing them and patients coming back for more.
our immune system goes into high gear and tries to prevent us from
dying. in most cases, it does a very good job of keeping bacteria at
bay; hence, what the dentists term as a "successful" root canal, but
what is scientifically, an oxymoron. well, eventually, the outcome is
obvious, the body will break down. u may go to your grave w/ a root
canal in tact, w/ no pain or apparent infection, but your immune system
simply couldn't spare enough energy over time to ward off heart disease
or alzheimer's or whatever other malady came it's way. so, i guess it
is a matter of picking your battles. is keeping a tooth more important
than health is the question ppl have to answer for themselves. some ppl
will only notice perhaps rheumatoid arthritis. is it worth it to them
to live in pain and take meds every day, but having their smile not
reflect any missing natural teeth? hmm. Torrie

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dear Torrie,

I am very pleased with the thoroughness of your response. My dentist
(who filled the hole in the existing crown as a result of the root
canal) told me that the endodontist told him that my tooth was very
infected. I told the dentist that I was experiencing some fairly mild
(but of concern) jaw pain in the area of the tooth. He said that
because there was actually an abcess on the jaw, this was to be
expected. I asked if I should have an additional course of antibiotics,
and he said that my immune system would eventually resolve the jaw
discomfort. He said that the blood (with white blood cells) could more
easily reach the jaw than the tooth itself (because the tooth is a
closed system),. He expressed confidence that the jaw would heal. I
asked him about a wider spectrum antibiotic (because it seemed to me
that the penicillin didn't really have a beneficial effect at all. He
said that if penicillin can be tolerated it is usually the best choice
for tooth type bacteria. Anyway, my jaw still throbs (fairly mildly
though) now 6 days after the root canal. I guess it may take a little
more time. If you have additional thoughts, I would be interested.
Thank you again for your timely and comprehensive response to my
inquiry.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------well,
i don't know if u can muddle thru all this
http://www.ratsteachmicro.com/Anaerobic_Bacteria_Notes/HCOE_CAI_Review_Notes_Ana
erobic_Bacteria.htm.
but the bacteria r often broader, so that is y penicillin does not
always do the trick. if the antibiotics work, of course it will b just
a bandaid approach, something your dentist cannot see the "forest 'fore
the trees" on.

Torrie

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

oh yes, i do have one additional question. after these root canal teeth
are pulled, do you then recommend implants, dentures or what? to take
the place of these missing teeth. i would appreciate a response to this
last question. thank you very very much.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

implants r bad. see below for something i wrote about them. if the
teeth r bridgeable, u can get bridges. or, u can get partials. we have
a temporary partial ready the same day and u have to wear it 2 to 3
months b4 getting permanent work.

Torrie

titanium implants are putting metal and a high milliamperage close to
the brain, which is not good. i have seen a woman measure nearly 400
milliamps positive charge and 30 neg charge while having these in her
mouth. we removed them. our body runs on electrical impulses, so this
can disrupt those. also, dentists and drs will tell u that bone grows
to titanium implants. well, it will grow around it. but, it is a
foreign object and the body will build up antibodies to it. over time,
it will pull away from the bone and can become loose. if u will notice,
they say implants last about 15 years or so. they are working on an
implant made of diamond, supposed to b available in 5 yrs. but, it will
still b a foreign object, so i don't think it will be a good idea
either.