Dentist Pain after filling

[cockroach]

Mr Roach went to the dentist for a check up & clean, they told him his mercury filling was leeking. So he had it removed & a white one put in. For 1 week he was is pain & went back. They redid it & have said he has a miniscule hole which is exposing the nerves & if the pain does not go away they will refer him to have root canal.
He had no trouble until he went. Are they on a ��� making scheme or could they be correct?

[saffstar]

They could be correct. I was a dental nurse for seven years and this sort of thing was fairly common. When removing an old filling, particularly a deep one, there is always a risk that the root will be irritated and, once this occurs, it will continue to happen (even though flare-ups can sometimes be a long way apart) The best way of fixing it is to remove the nerve and fill in the root canal - this is usually successful but isn't 100% reliable (chances of success are worst in molars). In some circumstances the tooth has to be extracted in the end. If you can afford it, keeping the tooth is always worth going for as, once the tooth is removed, the bone around it shrinks away which can have a knock-on effect on the stability of the surrounding teeth. Root filled teeth are more brittle after the procedure so Mr Roach's dentist might suggest a crown over the top of the tooth for strength.

[cockroach]

they did sugg a crown. & it is a molar . he has to wait 10 days now.
Ta x

[MrXLA]

It perhaps food for thought (no pun intended) to consider the following:
Absoultely no dentistry is permanent, so inevitably fillings need replacing.
If you have a leaking/cracked/deficient restoration (filling) then quite often you would be unaware of any problem until bacteria ingress into or close to a living part of a tooth or teeth and stimulate a response. Sadly the only response possible inside a tooth is pain.
I'm realiably informed that one of the many reasons for dental examination is to detect failing restorations early in the hope that they can be replaced before problems arise.
Occasionally the removal of a deep restoration which is in proximity to the nerve chamber of tooth can excacerbate the living nerve and occasionally cause it to die.
This is what would occur if a leaking filling was left alone in any case (it would just take longer to occur).
As I'm unsure whether Mr Roach sees an NHS or Private dentist I am unable to reliably comment on the cost of treatment.
However it is fact that on the NHS providing root canal treatment even if a crown is placed, is simply not cost effective. On the new NHS contract patients who need no or very little work are more cost effective. Essentially those that pay and need little treatment, subsisdise those that either do not pay and/or need lots of treatment (many people involved in dentistry see this as unfair and it is one reason why some dentists have left the NHS).
If you are payinmg privately then true the fees may be substantial, however generally because molar root canal treatment tends to be lengthy, its not the easiest way to generate profit.
If you are seeing a specialist in endodontics (root canal treatment), their fees would be substantial enough to generate a very good profit, but they typically have long waiting lists and don't need to look for work.
So in answer to question: unlikely