Root canal treatment

When a tooth is either cracked or has a deep cavity, bacteria may enter the pulp tissue and cause a rather uncomfortable infection. If left untreated, an abscess can form and deliver a significant amount of pain and swelling. Not only can this infection damage your jawbones, but it can severely impact your overall health. Luckily, we are able to remove the damaged tissue within the tooth without affecting the day-to-day function of the tooth.

Although pain is a common sign that you may have a diseased or infected nerve, it is not uncommon for a tooth to be infected without delivering any painful side effects. If you are experiencing any of the symptoms below, contact us immediately.

• Severe toothache
• Extreme sensitivity to hot and cold
• Swelling and irritation of the surrounding gum tissue
• Discomfort from chewing or pressure
• Tooth discoloration

Once your doctor has determined the necessity of a root canal treatment, we will schedule you for an appointment to begin your treatment. A Root Canal treatment typically involves one to three office visits. During your initial treatment, one of our skilled endodontists will provide the patient with anesthesia, enabling the patient to be at rest for the duration of the treatment. The doctor will then remove the infected tissue, clean the interior of the tooth, and seal it to prevent further infection. If your tooth has experienced severe decay, a crown may be placed to provide the tooth with additional protection.

• No, it is not. A root canal is done under local anesthesia which is very efficient in blocking pain. The procedure lasts between one and a few hours, and the dentist injects enough anesthetics beforehand so that the patient will be at rest the whole time. A root canal becomes as comfortable as doing fillings.
• But why do people associate it with pain? There are two reasons for that. Years ago, local anesthesia was not as effective as it is today and people could have felt pain during the procedure. The other reason is that sometimes a tooth has a very painful abscess before it needs a root canal, and people associate that pain with the procedure, even though the treatment was done by numbing the tooth first and no pain was felt.
• If a tooth is abscessed, the root canal could not always be done right away because local anesthesia may not work properly. That's why the dentist could choose to prescribe antibiotics first and do the root canal another day.
• It is normal that mild pain could be perceived after the root canal procedure is completed. It may last from a few days to a few weeks. The dentist might advise taking painkillers if needed so that the patient is comfortable.
• What if a root canal is done properly but a person still feels pain. There may then be another problem. The tooth can be cracked or there are hidden canals in the root that the dentist or endodontist couldn't find.