If you are browsing our website, your general dentist has likely told you that you need a root canal. Some of our more common procedures are described below.
Root Canal Therapy
There are many reasons a tooth may need a root canal. Large amounts of decay in a tooth can introduce bacteria into the nerve and blood supply in the core of that tooth and cause an infection. Trauma or fracture can stress or expose the nerve of a tooth, causing it irreparable harm. Dental treatments that preserve the health of a tooth throughout its lifetime can also stress a nerve to the point that it cannot survive any longer as well. In all these instances, root canal therapy is effective because it removes the affected nerve, smoothing the inner walls of the tooth and decreasing the bacteria in the root to the point where the body can heal itself again.
Root Canal Retreatment
Occasionally an existing root canal fails to heal. This can be caused by many reasons, such as a missed canal, or a previous treatment that didn't extend far enough to the tip of the root to eliminate the infection there. Some older root canals fail because the materials used to fill the cleaned canals are not as high a quality as those we use currently. In these cases, pulling out the old filling and re-cleaning all the canals and filling them to a proper length is all that is needed for success.
Surgical retreatment/apicoectomy
When an existing root canal is still problematic and the original treatment looks sound, we have the ability to clean the root out at the tip. Some nerve anatomy looks similar to a river delta--it is impossible to thoroughly clean to the extent the body needs in order to heal. In this case, removing this problematic root tip results in comfort for the patient.
Internal bleaching
Have you ever seen someone with one tooth that looks grey or brown? Usually, that is the result of trauma to that tooth. The nerve has died and resulted in a dead gray color of that tooth. Any bleeding that occurs inside the tooth can also result in discoloration. We have the ability to remove that nerve and bleach the tooth from the inside out. It is a wonderful option for patients that have a limited number of teeth that are discolored.