Root Canal and Crown for My 6 Year Old

I work in a dentists office. A root canal on a baby tooth is not the same thing as a root canal on an adult tooth. It's much easier and much quicker. They will numb her up so she won't feel anything. After they will place some medicine in her tooth so she'll be comfortable. Certainly get a second opinion if that will make you feel better, but if it is recommened, you definitely want to get the treatment done. If the infection spreads she may end up losing that tooth. Like they said, she will have that tooth until she is 11-12 so if the tooth is gone, her other teeth may adjust leaving not enough room for the permanent tooth to come through...leading to other problems, possible orthodontics. Good luck~

I would get a second opinion

I would get a second opinion. My dentist is great with kids and he is very honest. I was told I needed a bridge immediately. He gave me a second opinion for free and told me it was not needed. He just watches it for me and if it is needed later he will do it.

Do you live near Vernon Hills? I just talked to them and they said they would do a second opinion for free. All Smiles Dental ###-###-####. It might be worth the trip if he is doing it for free. Make sure you tell him P. sent you :)

My son (then 6 now 7)just narrowly avoided a root canal (we got a second opinion) but did end up with a crown. It is on a molar that he will have for a while. He didn't have any trouble having it done and he has been very diligent about his dental care since that day 6 months ago. In fact- he is a little bit too diligent, wanting to brush and floss after every meal, snack or drink. It makes meals out terrible fun ;)

I would definitely get a second opinion. A root canal kills or removes the nerve and I have not heard of it growing back. I have heard of young children having root canals but this is on permanent molars, not first teeth.

After my response, I got curious and found this online. I would still get a second opinion though.
This is an answer from a pediatric dentist:
Root canal treatment for baby teeth and permanent teeth are not the same kind of treatment. A 6 year old probably has a mix of both baby and permanent teeth. If the tooth is decayed, badly broken, or infected the treatment indicated is a "baby tooth root canal." In this case only the tissue inside the clinical crown of the tooth is removed medicaments are placed inside and the tooth is covered with a stainless steel crown. The alternative to this treatment is the removal of the tooth. Now be advised that removing the tooth may not be the best alternative in the long term. For example, the baby teeth are helpers for the control of the spaces for permanent teeth and losing one too early may bring a problem with the permanent teeth.

My oldest ( now 11) had a baby root canal when she about 7. It is not a fun procedure for them, but better then having the tooth pulled down the road. One of my twin girls had to have a tooth extracted, and then a spacer had to be put in her mouth to save a space for the permanent tooth.

We now finally found a great pediatric dental practice called Grove Dental. They have a few locations, ans we see Dr Bob. They are really great.

I work in a dental office and I've seen cases like this before. I know that it seems like maybe it would just be easier to skip the treatment but it is better to get it done. Without getting the proper treatment it may has worse side effects as she gets older. I will tell you though it will be hard to find a endodontist that will see a child under 12. If you need some help I can try to find you some names. Also generally it takes about 2 weeks for a permanent crown to come in after the crown prep so it may be hard to keep the temporary in.

i've had so many dentists tell me i needed service and the 2nd opinion said i didn't.
a difference of literally $10,000.
so get a 2nd opinion.
as far as root canals. they don't hurt but they take a LONG TIME

Absolutely normal. Need a great dentist? Kids First Pediatric Dentistry in Elgin= Amazing. Good Luck.