Nobody wants to lose teeth, and with thorough dental hygiene and regular dental check-ups at Diamond Smiles Dental, you should be able to keep your natural teeth for most of your life.

However, your teeth could become inflamed or infected due to injuries such as a cracked tooth or deep cavity damages. These scenarios could allow bacteria from within your mouth to reach the tooths pulp, which is the innermost layer of your teeth. This could then lead to infection, swelling or the dying of the pulp’s vital tissue.

Root canal treatment also known as endodontic treatment, is a dental procedure used to treat an infection at the centre of a tooth.
The procedure removes the bacteria that is affecting the nerve or pulp chamber of the tooth. The nerve is usually inflamed, infected or necrotic (has died) and sometimes can present as a swelling and/or pain. It is a relatively simple procedure; the treatment is not painful and can save a tooth that might otherwise have to be extracted.

root-canal-information

FAQ

The treatment is usually over two appointments; however, it can be more depending on certain factors.

Our team will take X-rays to determine where the decay is located and its extent. Once diagnosis has been made, we will use local anaesthetic during the process to make it as comfortable as possible. We have had patients who have fallen asleep during treatment!

The aim of the treatment is to remove all the infection and clean and fill the root canals.

The tooth will have a permanent filling placed over the top to seal the access hole. However, a root filled tooth is usually much weaker and brittle than a natural tooth and can over time become broken. Therefore, the dentist may recommend a crown to be placed on the tooth, after having the treatment, to avoid this. Not all teeth will need to be crowned as it depends on the tooth, how many nerves are in the tooth and the current condition of the tooth. All the options are laid by our dentist and will be discussed with you.

The main benefit is the treatment will save a diseased tooth from being extracted (taken out). It relieves toothache and can stop recurrent infections/swellings that have been associated with the tooth. It will enhance the overall well being of your teeth. It allows your natural biting sensation to continue as the tooth is still present.

All our dentists have experience with root canal treatment, however if the canals are hard to find, closed up or have previously had treatment that has failed this would need to be referred to a Specialist dentist. All options will be discussed at the appointment.

This infection could spread through the root canal system, which could eventually lead to an abscess, causing a great deal of discomfort. If root canal treatment is not carried out, the tooth may need to be taken out and this would leave a gap.

The treatment usually takes two 1 hour appointments to complete. However this depends on other factors when the tooth has been accessed in order to find the canals. Sometimes an anterior tooth can be done in one longer appointment due to only having one nerve canal- this can be discussed with the dentist. The anterior teeth are the six teeth at the front of the mouth on each jaw.

Testimonials

Here’s what our happy patients had to say about our services: