Timeline of a Tooth

Three root canals on the same tooth!  One was incomplete, one a lie, and one a retreatment.  I was quick to go to the dentist this time around, but found it hard to believe that the same tooth that had had a root canal procedure, x-rays and a crown would be bothering me again.  I was asked about the tooth's history and wasn't sure anyone would believe the whole story, but here it is.

The pain began on the road from Wisconsin.  We were taking Sam on a college tour the summer before his senior year.  At the time we were living in Sofia, and didn't have a dentist in the US I could call for this emergency.  And it was an emergency!  I finally got into a chain and related the experience in the facebook post below:

Anne Jahnke is feeling pained.
July 16, 2015 · Alden ·

I had a root canal today... And experienced much of what is wrong with US healthcare. The pain came on quickly and the local dentists were either booked or closed. I got in at a national chain about 1 hr away. I arrived in great pain and was given forms to fill out, a TV to watch, but nothing for the pain. After waiting 2 hrs in a freezing room, enduring unnecessary tests and a lady trying to sell me a $150 toothbrush, I finally saw a dentist. Only after deciding I needed two crowns and a root canal, did he give me something for the pain. The most sympathetic person was the clerk who swiped my credit card. They were as anxious as I was for it to be over, and see me gone before the nova cane wore off and I realized that after 5 hrs and $1000, I was still in pain.

I had decided to get the two crowns done back in Bulgaria, where everything is cheaper.  My experience with Bulgarian dentistry was a story in itself, you can read about it in the blog post: Close Please. I distinctly remember being told that the tooth in question did not need a crown, and vaguely remember being sent to get an x-ray to prove it.  Since most of it was done with limited English, old Soviet technology in dimly lit echoing buildings, I can't be sure what was done. 

My next position in Kuwait came with dental insurance, and I decided to take advantage of this and finally get a crown put on the tooth which had been making do with a temporary filling for over a year now. We had little choice in dentists, as our insurance was only carried by one clinic in the city, and of their dentists, all were booked up except one.  I soon found out why this particular dentist had vacancies!  When I inquired about the crown, he asked me to close the door and lowered his voice.  Apparently the insurance didn't cover crowns, so he would call it a root canal.  I would get my crown, but I couldn't tell anyone.  He wasn't really a rule follower, and I rather suspect he had never been to dental school.  I understand why the Bulgarian technology didn't pick up on the fact that one whole root of the tooth had been missed in the original treatment, but this last dentist was just lazy, .. and negligent. 

Since moving to Minnesota I have used both our family dentist and dental insurance a fair amount. They do a great job and quickly found the missed root that was causing me pain.  I now have a temporary filling in the crown.  However, this is not the end of the saga.  Since I have now taken a position in Nigeria, my insurance will be changing at the end of the month, before I can finish the procedure.  I might once again be going overseas with the need to find a friendly dentist who can finish the job. 

I gave an abridged version of this to the last dentist retreating my tooth.  Her comment was, "It's a good thing you have  those memories to help you recall the time line of events of the tooth!" To which I responded, "Good for something, but not for my dental health!"  I could do with a few less memories of this sort in future.