Root Canal Therapy

Root canal therapy can be pain free!  Most often a prescription of antibiotics is necessary 3-7 days prior to treatment to ensure the successful anesthetization of the infected tooth.  If this prescription is followed, the root canal procedure will be virtually pain free. 

A root canal cleans out infected nerves and vessels in the pulp chamber and canals and replaces the organic material with an inert filling.  Signs of a need for root canal treatment may be spontaneous pain or throbbing, pain while biting or chewing, sensitivity to hot and cold, and severe decay.

Neglecting to get a root canal when deep tooth decay is detected can cause serious damage and infection to the nerves and vessels inside the tooth.  Without treatment, infection will spread, bone around the tooth will begin to degenerate, and the tooth may fall out.  Pain usually worsens until one is forced to seek emergency dental attention.  The only alternative is usually extraction of the tooth, which can cause surrounding teeth to shift crookedly, resulting in an irregular bite.  Though an extraction is cheaper, the space left behind will require an implant or a bridge, which is more expensive that root canal therapy.  Keeping your original teeth is always the best choice, and root canals can make this possible.

Our dentists are highly trained in root canal therapy.  Most procedures are performed by our dentists--including molar endo.  On rare occasions, certain dental anomalies will require a referral to an endodontist specalist.