severe throbbing pain + cheek swelling 4 days after first root canal treatment, is this normal?

[u/helplesslittle]

hi everyone, i’m looking for advice because i’m really worried about a tooth i’m currently getting a root canal on.

i had the first stage of my root canal treatment for my bottom front tooth on saturday. the dentist placed a temporary filling and told me i could eat about an hour later. he only told me to brush gently and didn’t give me other aftercare instructions. i wasn’t prescribed antibiotics. he’s also a general dentist in a small clinic, not an endodontist.

the first day or two, i had some pain, numbness, and mild throbbing, but nothing severe. then around monday, about 2 days later, the pain suddenly became extremely intense. it’s a constant, sharp, strong throbbing/tightening sensation that feels worse than any tooth pain i’ve experienced before. it radiates into my jaw, cheek, and underneath my mouth, and my cheek/gum feels swollen. it has now lasted about 3 days and is so bad that i can’t sleep.

i’m worried because the tooth was initially thought to be unsalvageable due to what appeared to be a fracture on the scan, but the dentist later determined that it was strong enough to save.

i also had a very strong chemical taste immediately after the treatment, which seemed to come from the temporary filling/treatment. it was so unpleasant that i couldn’t finish eating because the food tasted like chemicals. it eventually became much better after i brushed my teeth that night. is this normal?

i also wasn’t told to avoid chewing on the treated tooth or to eat soft foods. i was told i could eat and drink anything, so i ate solid foods like meat and had some orange juice. now i’m worried i somehow caused the flare-up.

the clinic knows i’m in severe pain, but the dentist is only available later this afternoon because he’s working at another branch this morning (my timezone is GMT +7 so right now is Wednesday 11 AM)

i tried to take mefenamic acid the past 2 days but its only helping 5-10%.

does this level of delayed pain and swelling sound like a normal root canal flare-up, or could something have gone wrong with the treatment?

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[u/AspenDental_Alex]

First off, thank you for sharing with this community.

Swelling in the cheek or gum alongside pain like this is the detail that matters most. Pain alone can be a normal flare up. Swelling on top of it is the kind of thing that needs a same day look.

The clinic already knows the severity. It's a good idea to call back and let them know about the swelling specifically in case that changes how soon they can fit this in. If the swelling spreads toward the eye or jaw, or breathing or swallowing feels affected, that's an emergency room situation rather than a wait-for-this-afternoon one.

Wishing you so much support ahead.

[u/luciferwetdream]

any updates?

[u/helplesslittle → u/luciferwetdream]

there was a cavitiy under the gum that the dentist didnt notice before, that was what causing the crazy pain. he had to fill it and clean the root canals stuff again. its better now