Patient Guide to Root Canal: Procedure, Risks & Benefits
If you’ve been ignoring the nagging pain in your tooth, now is the time to take action. Tooth pain isn’t random. It’s a sign that something’s wrong, and that you need help from an experienced dentist like Dr. Michael Pappas and the team at Grove City Smiles.
With a root canal, our team can eliminate your pain, restore your tooth, and get you back to your day-to-day life. But we know that the idea of getting a root canal can be kind of intimidating. After all, this procedure has a pretty bad reputation in popular culture.
So in this guide, we’ll discuss root canals in depth and bust some of the most common myths about this treatment. From the basics about the procedure to how it works, its benefits, and its risks, you’ll learn everything you need to know to get dental care with confidence.
Root canal therapy, usually just called a “root canal” for short, is a treatment that’s used to eliminate infections in teeth. Tooth infections happen when dental trauma, wear and tear, or a deep cavity compromise the enamel and dentin, which are the hard outer layers of your tooth.
When this happens, the vulnerable “pulp” inside the tooth is exposed to oral bacteria, and it becomes infected. The pulp is full of nerves and blood vessels, and it’s what keeps your tooth alive. Over time, the infection will start to kill the pulp, and your tooth will begin to die with it.
A root canal stops this from happening. In a root canal, a dentist will open up the tooth, clean out all of the infected material, then flush the tooth with a special sanitizing liquid to kill any remaining bacteria. Then, the tooth will be sealed and covered with a dental crown to protect it from further damage.
Root canals eliminate the pain of tooth infections, preserve your tooth, and prevent the need for more complex and invasive treatments like tooth extractions. If you have a toothache that won’t go away, a root canal is almost certainly the best option for restoring your smile!
Not sure if you have an infected tooth and need a root canal? Only a dentist can make a diagnosis, of course, but there are a few signs that you may have a tooth infection and require treatment ASAP:
At Grove City Smiles, we practice conservative care. That means that our goal, whenever possible, is to preserve your natural tooth structure. The benefits of root canals mean that they fit perfectly into this approach:
Wondering what happens during a root canal? It’s less complicated than you may think. Here’s a look at how the process works and what you can expect during your visit to Grove City Smiles.
First, you’ll come in and meet with one of our dentists for a comprehensive oral exam and consultation. Your dentist will examine your teeth, take digital X-rays, and use 3D imaging software to develop a comprehensive understanding of your oral health, diagnose your tooth infection, and determine if a root canal is necessary.
Typically, you don’t have to do anything special to prepare for root canal therapy. However, if you do choose to be sedated for your treatment, your dentist will provide you with instructions you’ll need to follow before your visit, such as fasting (not eating or drinking) for 6-8 hours before your procedure.
To begin the process, your dentist will clean your teeth and numb your mouth to keep you comfortable. We also offer a wide variety of sedation options, including nitrous oxide (laughing gas), oral conscious sedation, and IV sedation for patients who need a little more help getting through their procedures.
Next, your dentist at Grove City Smiles will use a dental drill to gently remove any decayed or damaged tooth material. They will create a small opening in the tooth, which can be used to access the pulp.
Using a variety of specialized tools, your dentist will clean out the damaged and infected pulp from the inside of your tooth. Once that’s done, they will flush the tooth with a special cleaning solution to kill any lingering bacteria. The next step is to inject a material called “gutta-percha” into the tooth’s interior. This replaces the missing pulp, stabilizing and strengthening the tooth from the inside.
Finally, your dentist will place a temporary resin crown onto your tooth. This seals it up and protects it from damage during the initial healing and recovery period. You’ll typically come back to Grove City Smiles within 2-3 weeks to get your permanent porcelain crown.
The root canal success rate is as high as 97%, depending on how well your treatment is performed and how you care for your smile after treatment. Root canals are highly effective and have a low risk of complications, especially with the modern imaging and diagnostic tools we use at Grove City Smiles. However, like any medical procedure, a root canal does involve some risks:
Worried that you’ll have to follow a bunch of complicated instructions after treatment, or deal with an extensive recovery period? We’ve got good news. The root canal recovery time is really fast. In fact, most patients can get back to their normal routine within a day of their surgery.
However, we will give you some instructions on how to care for your newly-treated tooth and reduce your risk of root canal complications. For pain management after a root canal, for example, over-the-counter pain relievers like Tylenol and Advil are usually enough to deal with any discomfort.
You also should avoid chewing soft or sticky foods on the side of your mouth with a temporary crown. This reduces the risks of damaging or dislodging your temporary crown before your permanent crown can be placed at Grove City Smiles.
Root canals are generally the best option for treating an infected tooth. However, depending on the severity of your tooth damage and infection, here are a couple of root canal alternatives that you and your dentist at Grove City Smiles may want to consider:
Pulp capping is used for teeth that have damage that extends to the pulp, but the inside of the tooth has not yet become infected. For example, pulp capping might be recommended if you have a deep cavity, but your dentist catches it early enough that the internal pulp isn’t infected.
In this process, the damaged enamel is removed, then the healthy pulp is treated with a special medication that protects it, eliminates bacteria, and encourages the pulp to heal. Then, a dental filling is used to cover up the tooth and protect it as it heals.
At our office, we will only recommend tooth extractions if your tooth is too damaged or infected to be saved with a root canal. Dr. Pappas and our team believe in preserving natural teeth whenever possible.
Still, there are some situations when a tooth extraction is the best way to eliminate infection, get rid of your pain, and protect your oral health. Once your tooth has been pulled, you and your dentist can explore options to replace it, including partial dentures, a dental bridge, or a dental implant.
If you have a painful toothache that won’t go away or you’ve noticed other signs that you might have an infected tooth, a root canal from Grove City Smiles may be your best option for getting out of pain, restoring your tooth, and getting your oral health back on track.
So don’t wait. If you have a tooth that’s been bothering you, Dr. Michael Pappas and our team of dentists are here to help in Grove City, OH. Get in touch with our team at (614) 350-5300 or contact us online to book your visit. A pain-free smile is just a click or a call away!
We look forward to meeting you. Call (614) 350-5300 or request an appointment online to set up your first visit. We’ll be in touch soon.
