Endodontic Treatment

Root canal therapy

When the nerve ( aka. pulp, in dental term ) inside of your teeth are infected due to deep decay, large restoration, cracked tooth and trauma etc, dentists often prescribe root canal therapy to save the tooth and put a crown or sometimes filling on the tooth shortly after the procedure.  Millions of teeth are treated and saved this way each year, relieving pain and making teeth function again.  

Modern root canal therapy is usually completed in 1-2 appointments, patients do not experience any pain under properly administered anesthesia during the procedure.  For the first few days after treatment, your tooth might feel sensitive to chewing, especially if there was pain or infection before the procedure. This discomfort can be relieved with over-the-counter pain meds.  However, if you have severe pain/pressure or pain that lasts more than a few days, call the dentist.

During root canal therapy, an access opening is made on the top of the tooth to get access to the nerve, the infected nerve inside of the tooth is removed with instruments, thorough chemical disinfection and shaping of the irregular root canals inside the tooth are carefully performed before filling the root canals with paste and a resin material.   You should not chew or bite on the treated tooth until you have had it restored with a crown or filling. The unrestored tooth is susceptible to fracture, so you should make an appointment to get a crown or sometimes filling to cover the tooth as soon as possible.  Once the tooth is restored, it will continue to function fully like any other teeth.