Root Canal Treatment

Are Root Canal Treatments Necessary?

In the center of your tooth, beneath your enamel and dentin, is pulp. If your decay reaches down to the pulp, the pulp will get infected and you’ll end up needing a root canal treatment. As part of your natural defense system, your body sends white blood cells to try to fight an infection.

In other parts of the body, your body swells to accommodate this. The area surrounding the pulp does not have room for this, resulting in the strangling and death of the pulp. The infection, however, continues to spread. A root canal treatment will remove the infection, protecting your body from being infected.

Are Root Canal Treatments Painful?

Many patients fear that root canal treatments are painful and elect to have their tooth extracted instead. We discourage this for three reasons:

• Modern techniques have eliminated the pain in the vast majority of root canal treatment cases.
• It is always better to keep your natural teeth for as long as possible. Replacing teeth can be expensive. There are affordable options, but those have their own sets of problems.
• A tooth extraction is significantly more stressful to you and your body than a root canal treatment.

Often a root canal treatment is completely painless. The pulp has died, therefore there’s no feeling there. However, if you’re worried, we can always offer a form of sedation, such as nitrous oxide or Ativan.

If you suspect you have a tooth infection or decay, don’t put off treatment. It will spread. Don’t worry about being lectured or judged. That won’t happen at our office. Feel free to call our office to schedule an appointment or click here to request an appointment online.