Which is cheaper? Tooth extraction or Root Canal??

One of my back molars (second from the wisdom tooth) had a filling put in year ago....then tooth cracked last year, had a crown put on...now tooth is causing probs again. The dentist said if anything else went wrong they'd have to do a root canal.





Well, we have crappy dental insurance, so I'm wondering would it just be cheaper to have the tooth pulled rather than shelling out big bucks for a root canal? When they did the crown, they already shaved off more than half my tooth





**extra notes - I don't chew on that side, so really wouldn't miss the tooth eating-wise.....also it's far back so probably not noticable if it were pulled

Which is cheaper? Tooth extraction or Root Canal??
Since it's your second molar, i'd recommend extracting the tooth. As long as you have your first molars, your chewing/biting force shouldn't be greatly affected if you lose that tooth. Root canals are expensive, long procedure, and one that is difficult on second molars. Since your tooth is also cracked, it would need a crown, possibly a post as well, placed on it after the root canal, leading to an additional expense.
Reply:Having a tooth pulled is usually only around $50 - $100 but a root canal is like $1500 or more and there is still no garuntee that it will even fix the problem, I'd have it pulled if I were you!
Reply:i just hada tooth pulled today.


96.59 without insurance.


(i have an insurance plan that doesnt cover dental)
Reply:Unless you plan on getting an implant (way more expensive than a root canal), I would not have the tooth pulled. It would be cheaper initially to have an extraction, but then you will have a space. If there are teeth behind the extraction, they will start to tilt forward and can cause problems for your bone and gums. I would try the root canal first to see if that works.
Reply:Extraction. I had a root canal in one of my back molars and it ended up having an abscess in it, which was excruciatingly painful and i ahd to have drained several times. Eventually I begged my dentist to remove the horrid thing (which cost a fraction of the price of the orignal root canal) and he said after that he was pleased he had because he could never have drained it fully and the full extent of the abscess wasn't visible on the x-ray.





I'm fine with it now; it's right at the back nad no-one notices. The funny thing is when I occasioanlly get a hazlenut stuck in the gap!! If you have an extraction, make sure you ask your dentist about options to fill the gap and stop your other teeth moving.

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