Dentist was filling a standard sized patch of decay in a molar. I noticed him drilling and drilling and all of a sudden stop... Said the tooth was too far gone and needed a root canal. I've had several root canals before but they were all diagnosed in advance. Why could this tooth not take a standard filling? Dentist is recommending a gold crown atop the root canal. #15 FWIW.
That actually happened to me with one of my back teeth. I went in thinking it was just a small cavity, but once they started drilling, the decay was way deeper than the x-rays showed. I remember feeling kind of blindsided and honestly a bit frustrated—like, why didn’t they catch this sooner? Sometimes, apparently, decay spreads underneath and doesn’t show up clearly until they’re in there. I get being nervous about a gold crown too… I ended up going with porcelain because I just couldn’t get used to the idea of gold. It’s stressful when things change mid-appointment, for sure.
I get where you're coming from about feeling blindsided—nobody likes surprises at the dentist, especially when it means more work (and money) than you expected. But honestly, I don’t totally blame them for missing it on the x-ray. Has anyone else noticed how those things can be kind of hit or miss? I’ve had a couple of teeth where the x-ray looked “fine,” but then when they actually got in there, it was a whole different story. It’s frustrating, but I’m not sure there’s a perfect way to catch everything before they start.
About the gold crown thing—I know it seems weird at first, but is it really that big of a deal if it’s a back tooth? I went with gold for one of my molars after my orthodontist explained it lasts longer and is less likely to crack. Honestly, I never see it unless I’m practically unhinging my jaw in the mirror. Did your dentist give you any pros and cons between gold and porcelain? I get wanting something that looks natural, but sometimes I wonder if we worry too much about stuff nobody else will ever notice.
And yeah, the whole “filling turns into root canal” thing seems more common than people talk about. My sister had that happen twice. She was annoyed, but both times her dentist said the decay was sneaky and just didn’t show up until they started drilling. Maybe it’s just one of those things with teeth—sometimes you can’t tell what’s going on until you’re in there.
How did your porcelain crown turn out? Any regrets, or did it end up feeling pretty normal?
I can totally relate to that feeling of getting the rug pulled out from under you at the dentist. It’s wild how you can go in thinking it’s just a small filling, then suddenly you’re talking about root canals and crowns. Happened to me last year—my dentist started drilling, then paused and basically said, “Whoops, looks like we’ve got a bigger problem.” Not what you wanna hear with your mouth full of cotton.
About x-rays, I’ve noticed they don’t always tell the whole story either. My last “surprise” root canal didn’t show up on the x-ray at all, but once they got in there it was a mess. I guess it’s just tough for them to see everything, especially if the decay is hiding underneath an old filling or deep in the tooth.
As for crowns, I went with porcelain because I wanted it to blend in, but I do wonder if gold would’ve been smarter long-term. The porcelain one feels fine—no regrets so far—but now I’m paranoid about cracking it on something dumb like popcorn. Still, at least it looks like a regular tooth, which is kind of nice when I smile.
Dental stuff just seems like one of those things where you do your best and hope for no more surprises...
Definitely feeling blindsided and honestly embarrassed. This will be my 3rd root canal this year. My dentist said that since so much of the tooth structure is rotten and needs to be drilled out, the gold crown has the best chance of lasting without cracking or failing. I'm only in my 20s so I really need this tooth to last a while. But dang ever since the dentist started drilling, the tooth HURTS!!
