Dental Clinic in Fergus ON 226-897-1016 | Crystal Dental

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About Root Canal Treatment

Our teeth are not just a solid, tough structure in our body. It also has delicate parts with nerves, living tissues and blood vessels inside and any infection on these can cause severe pain and complications, if not attended to sooner. A root canal is one of the most commonly used dental treatments across the globe with over 15 million people getting it every year.

 

The root canal is a passageway inside your tooth,  that connects a tooth’s pulp and the nerves. Any infection, decay, inflammation or trauma in this area unattended can lead to severe pain, abscess, deterioration of the bone and surrounding tooth etc. To prevent this or any further complications, root canal therapy is performed where the dentist removes any decay and that space is filled with medicated materials, to help the tooth get back to function normally.

When might you need a root canal?

Sometimes an injury such as a car accident, a hard blow, or a crack in the tooth can damage the living tissue inside but the most common cause is tooth decay. Harmful bacteria break through the outer shell of your tooth and open a cavity. If not stopped, the decay will continue toward the nerve of the tooth causing irreversible inflammation in the pulp, which then becomes non-vital.

 

If the root canal is not treated at that time, it will result in an infection or abscess. If the abscess is left untreated, you may experience severe discomfort and the infection could spread to the surrounding bone. The Dentist will test the tooth in various ways to see how bad the damage is and, if necessary, will gain access through the crown to take out the diseased pulp. The root will then be permanently filled with special material so that the tooth can be restored.

 

During endodontic treatment, the nerve, blood and nutrient supply to the tooth is removed. This will cause the tooth to become brittle and prone to fracturing which could result in the need to extract the tooth. A full coverage crown is recommended to prevent this from happening.

Save your tooth from Extraction with Root Canal Treatment

When a tooth becomes infected patients can sometimes experience severe pain and discomfort and root canal treatment is often required if the patient wishes to save the tooth. You can book dental appointments online 24 hours a day and if necessary, have root canal treatment carried out on the same day.

Reasons Leading to Root Canal Infections

If you do not follow proper oral hygeine it can lead to the tooth enamel to decay and eventually form a cavity. This cavity if left undetected or unattended can spread to the dentin, and then eventually the pulp and blood vessels. Unexpected trauma on the tooth can also lead to cracks and eventually to root canal infections as well. In any of these cases, it is important that you must visit your dentist as soon as possible and get the root canal treatment done.

Symptoms of Root Canal

Does Root Canal Treatment Hurt?

Normally there is no pain when root canal treatment is being carried out. However, in cases where an acute tooth abscess exists, there is a chance that the local anaesthesia might struggle to fully anaesthetise the tooth. We always use plenty of local anaesthetic and allow sufficient time for the local anaesthetic to work in order to make the treatment as painless as possible.

 

There maybe some residual pain after root canal treatment is completed but this pain usually settles down after 2 days and is greatly reduced by taking painkillers.

Do Root Filled Teeth Need a Crown?

Following root canal treatment on molars (back of the mouth teeth), it is highly advised that the tooth is crowned because root filled teeth can fracture when placed under high bite forces at the back of the mouth. Front of the mouth root filled incisor teeth usually do not need a crown as bite forces on those teeth is much less.

Benefits of Root Canal

When you visit us, you can rest assured knowing you will be treated by experienced dental professionals in the most comfortable way. We believe in creating a relaxed and painless experience for our patients and that stays on top of our priority. You’d also be glad to know that we have same-day appointments and offer a wide range of payment options too for your convenience.

Alternative Treatments

In some cases, root canal treatment is not sufficient by itself to remove all the infection from a tooth. This could lead to patients requiring an Apicectomy microsurgery, which treats infections outside of the root. In more mild infection cases, pulpotomy can be carried out instead of root canal treatment. If the patient does not wish to save an infected tooth, an alternative treatment to root canal treatment is tooth extraction.