Urgent Dental Care
Root Canal Therapy
The treatment that has an undeserved reputation, and the one that keeps the tooth.
What it is
A root canal has a reputation built on how the tooth felt before the appointment, not during it. The procedure is what relieves the pain, not what causes it.
When the nerve inside a tooth dies — from decay, a crack or trauma — the space it leaves becomes a reservoir for infection. Root canal treatment cleans that space, disinfects it and seals it, which stops the infection and lets you keep a tooth that would otherwise have to come out.
It is done under local anaesthetic, usually across one or two visits, with rubber dam isolating the tooth so nothing else gets in. Afterwards a back tooth almost always needs a crown, because a root-treated tooth is more brittle — leaving it uncrowned is the commonest way these teeth are eventually lost.
Included
What this
involves
Everything below is carried out here, by the clinician who planned it. Anything not on this list is either not needed or will be discussed with you before it is booked.
- Diagnosis with radiographs and testing
- Local anaesthetic throughout
- Rubber dam isolation
- Cleaning, shaping and sealing the canals
- Retreatment of failing root fillings
- Crown planning afterwards
Nobody plans a dental emergency. The practical measure of one is how quickly it stops hurting.
Common questions
Good To Know
- Is it as bad as people say?
- No. The tooth is numb throughout, and most people find it comparable to having a filling — a long one. The pain people associate with it is the abscess beforehand.
- Why do I need a crown afterwards?
- A root-treated back tooth has lost its blood supply and a good deal of structure, which makes it brittle. A crown protects it from splitting, and skipping it is the usual reason these teeth are eventually lost.
- Could I just have it taken out instead?
- You can, and sometimes that is the right call. But replacing a tooth costs more than saving it, and nothing works quite as well as the tooth you already have. We will set out both options with prices.
More in this area
Urgent Dental Care
Considering root canal therapy?
Come in for a consultation. We will examine, explain and give you a written plan with a price against every item — then you decide, in your own time.