Ideally, a root canal treatment should save your troubled tooth once and for all, but like with many things in life, complications sometimes arise. You should be aware of the potential signs of these complications so that you can take measures and save your teeth if the complications do arise. Here are some of the telltale signs of such complications:

Swelling

Some degree of swelling is to be expected after a root canal treatment because the tissues around your tooth have been bruised. However, this "normal" swelling should go down as the bruising heals and the infection. The inflammation can also be triggered by the stress of keeping your mouth open for an unnaturally long time during the treatment process. The post-surgical inflammation may also be remnants of the inflammation caused by the infections that caused the need for the root canal in the first place.

Sensitivity to Pressure

You may also experience heightened sensitivity to pressure after your root canal treatment. Again, a slight level of sensitivity is normal during the first few days after the treatment, but it should go away after some time. Therefore, you know you have a problem on your hands if even the slightest pressure on your affected tooth delivers debilitating pain. In such cases, trying to brush your teeth or even closing your mouth may trigger the hypersensitivity. In this case, you are probably looking at a failed root canal treatment and the root of the tooth is still inflamed and sore due to the infection.

Sensitivity to Extreme Temperatures

Although sensitivity to temperature extremes is more common with teeth with eroded enamel, it sometimes appears on teeth that have undergone root canal treatment. If that is the case, then eating or drinking hot or cold things will cause intense pain in your teeth. Sensitivity to temperature extremes is also caused by the same thing as sensitivity to pressure – failed endodontic treatment.

Pain

Lastly, persistent pain may also signal a problem with your tooth after endodontic treatment. This is probably the case if you are experiencing tooth pain without any obvious trigger. However, your pain needs a professional diagnosis to rule out referred pain, which is pain in another part of the body that is being referred (due to shared nerves) to your tooth. You might even be dealing with phantom pain, which is pain that you are "feeling" on the infected tissues that have already been removed.

Contact a clinic, like Red Oak Dentist, for more help.