Examination of Suspected Neuropathic Pain Disorders Following Root Canal Procedure : Two Case Reports

Abstract

Root canal procedures may sometimes result in postoperative pain for a long time. In these clinical conditions, neuropathic pain disorders may occur as a result of dysfunction with nerve injury, and management tends to be intractable. We report here two cases of lingering tooth pain after a root canal procedure, and the clinical examination could be diagnosed as neuropathic pain disorders. These two cases were characterized by prolonged periods of burning pain in the tooth though there was no obvious source of local pathology, and seemed to be different from conventional intractable periapical disease. In managing neuropathic pain disorders following a root canal procedure, it is important to use diagnosis criteria to evaluate neuropathic tooth pain after confirming which part caused inflammation in the root canal. Further studies of the clinical criteria for neuropathic pain disorders following root canal procedures are needed.