Root canal or sinus infection?

[LemonDrop]

Over the course of the past eight years or so, I've had root canals on all three molars in the upper left side of my mouth. Every now and then I still experience facial pain right above those teeth. Even though all three teeth feature crowns, I also experience sensitivy to hold and cold drinks at times. I've had recurring sinus infections for the past five years or so. Is it possible that one of the tooths is infected or is it most likely just the sinus infection causing pain in that region?

[Dr Mohsen J. Esfahani]

Thank you for your post.

Without seeing your teeth and maybe doing an X-ray its difficult to say if the problem is from teeth or the sinus. Certainly root apex's of upper molars are either close to the sinus or even sometimes actually within the maxillary sinus. It is unusual for the third molars to be root filled, often they are removed should infection arise due to their complex root anatomy. However if an x'ray shows that you have a failed root canal, you may need a tooth extraction or redoing the root canal.