A new issue arose for me in which a root canal over fifty years ago created slightly odd sensation that my regular dentist - Dr Barry Morse of the Ridge Dental in Montvale, NJ suggested might best be reviewed, imaged, diagnosed and treated by the eminently talented, equipped and capable Dr. Mi Sun Chun of Mid County Endodontic Group. With my previous experience, I was not averse to returning to her care.
With a detailed scan rendering a three dimensional image, we saw my problem was a pea sized void in my jaw above the old root canal. Dr Chun advised it was an infection which seemed to be gaining the upper hand thus causing the change in sensation that I noticed.
Dr Chun explained the procedure by which she would resolve my problem. This involved cutting my gum and peeling it away so she could drill directly into my jaw to clean out the infected and necrotic area, drop in something to boost restorative bone regrowth, stitch my gum back in place and send me home for a week after which she would remove the stitches while checking my overall recovery. This technique is more direct and prevents damage to an old dental repair that served well for half a century by not drilling back through the root canal risking the integrity of the crown.
I demanded pain medication because this sounded deep and horrendous, to be frank. I was extremely disappointed that I walked out of the office after the procedure with nothing but some high strength Motrin & Tylenol and a prescription for a whopping four Tramadol which I viewed as woefully insufficient for what I faced recovering from this deep wound and bone drilling/grinding/scrubbing/cleaning. As it turned out, Dr Chun was correct. The biggest pain I had after the surgery was a slight discomfort where my lip had been folded out of the way during the procedure. I never even bothered taking the supplied Motrin or Tylenol.
Finally, let me explain that I switched employers and so my dental insurance no longer covered Mid County Endodontic as IN NETWORK. The office put through the paperwork that same day so reimbursements were speedy if not for the overwhelming majority of the charges. There was never any question in my mind whom I would allow to perform this work on me. Choosing an In Network endodontist would have saved me a lot of money.
I decided I am entitled to the best. Naturally, this means I stick with Dr Chun and Mid County Endodontic Group regardless of what insurance will or will not cover.
I suggest you do the same. read more
