FAQ » What Should I expect During Root Canal Therapy?

First, we'll give you local anesthetic so the entire procedure will be comfortable for you. Once you are thoroughly numb, we will place a rubber dam around the tooth that we are going to treat. This isolates it from the rest of your mouth, and keeps i t dry and accessible to us. A rubber dam also prevents debris from falling to the back of your throat.

To get at the infection, we use the dental hand piece to make an opening through the top of your tooth down into the pulp chamber. We carefully clean out the infected tissue, and prepare the inside of the root canal(s) to receive the filling material, using tiny dental instruments called files. At left, you will see a photo of a dental file. We may also place medication in the root canals to kill the infection-causing bacteria. Occasionally during the procedure, we'll take X-rays to check our positioni ng and to make sure we have removed all of the infected pulp tissue.

Depending on the situation and the amount of infection present, we may have you back for a second appointment. When we're sure the root canals are completely clean and free of infection, we'll fill them with a root canal filling material.

If the decay or trauma that necessitated the root canal left us with a small amount of remaining tooth structure, we may also recommend a post and core. Posts come in a variety of materials and lengths, but are designed to be cemented or bonded within the root of a tooth. They serve to reinforce the tooth and anchor the core (or the buildup) that replaces the missing tooth structure. A crown (also called a cap) is often the final step to fully restore the tooth.

Root canal therapy has an undeserved reputation as an uncomfortable and tedious procedure. Modern dental techniques, combined with our commitment to your comfort, now make root canal therapy a dependable procedure that's comfortable for you.