Root Canal Treatment

Providing general dental care and the full range of dental implant services under one roof. Serving Markham Ontario and surrounding areas, including Stouffville, Unionville, Ajax, Pickering, Richmond Hill and Thornhill.

   
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Endodontics - The Art of Root Canal Treatment

Root Canal Treatment- Saving Teeth

What is a root canal?

What is it?

Root canal treatment, also known as endodontic treatment, is the process of removing infected, injured or dead pulp from your tooth. The space inside the hard layers of each tooth is called the root canal system. This system is filled with soft dental pulp made up of nerves and blood vessels that help your tooth grow and develop.

When bacteria (germs) enter your tooth through deep cavities, cracks or flawed fillings, your tooth can become abscessed. An abscessed tooth is a tooth with an infection in the pulp. If pulp becomes infected, it needs to be removed. An abscessed tooth may cause pain and/or swelling. Your dentist may notice the infection from a dental x-ray or from other changes with the tooth. If left untreated, an abscessed tooth can cause serious oral health problems.

 

How is it done?

  1. We will give you a local anesthetic (freezing).
  2. To protect your tooth from bacteria in your saliva during the treatment, twe place a rubber dam around the tooth being treated.
  3. We then make an opening in the tooth to reach the root canal system and the damaged pulp.
  4. Using very fine dental instruments, the pulp is removed the by cleaning and enlarging the root canal system.
  5. After the canal has been cleaned, the tooth is filled sealing the canal.
  6. The opening of the tooth is then sealed with either a temporary or permanent filling.

Restoration of root canal treated teeth

After a root canal treatment, your tooth has to be restored (fixed) to look, feel and work as much like a natural tooth as possible.

You  may have a permanent filling or a crown to restore your tooth. The choice of restoration will depend on the strength of the part of the tooth that’s left. A back tooth will likely need a crown because chewing puts a great deal of force on back teeth. If there is not enough of the tooth left, posts may be used to help support the crown.

Most root canal treatments are successful. But in some rare cases, a second root canal treatment is needed. This is called retreatment. When retreating a tooth, the root canal filling material is taken out, and the canal is re-cleaned, reshaped and refilled.