Robb

I have lost a couple of back teeth over the years and never had any trouble with other teeth shifting nor felt the need to get an implant as both were next to the wisdom teeth. No problem with chewing at all. If you decide to go with an extraction I would HIGHLY recommend going with a highly referred oral surgeon. I have had several other teeth root canaled closer to the front and they seemed to work out well except for one that still given me a slight sensitivity although the 2 dentists I see say nothing is wrong with that tooth.

In general I would try to save teeth where you can but if you do not have insurance root canals are very expensive when getting the crown afterwards. Typically when I had the sensation that you described it eventually needed to be addressed through either root canal or extraction. Never had any implants done as they are so expensive these days nor needed one.

Good luck I know its no fun!