Root canal treatment is necessary when the pulp, this is the soft tissue inside the root canal of one of your teeth, becomes inflamed or infected.
Why might this happen?
Possibilities include deep decay repeated dental procedures on the tooth or a crack or chip in the tooth. An injury to your tooth might also cause pulp damage even if the tooth itself has no visible chips or cracks. One thing is certain: leaving pulp inflammation or infection untreated is likely to result in pain or even lead to an abscess.
Many teeth that need root canal therapy will not initially cause you any pain. But that does not mean the tooth is okay. Your dentist and endodontist are able to check to see if the tooth’s pulp is damaged or infected. If it is, then you will need root canal treatment, even if the tooth doesn’t hurt.
One way you can check yourself is if you see something near a damaged tooth that looks like a pimple, see your dentist. The “pimple,” called a fistula, is a tunnel of tissue draining pus from an infection. There is no pain because the fistula keeps pressure from building in the tissue. The root canal pain can come and go but the underlying infection must be treated, and the tooth probably needs root canal treatment. Without treatment, nearby tissues will become infected.
Dentists can do several things to reduce pain in your tooth. A prescription for antibiotics may clear up the infection if the toothache is caused by an abscess or infection. Your root canal dentist might remove the nerve of the tooth if it is dying, relieving the pain; if your tooth has a cavity which is causing pain a filling will be put in; and if your tooth is cracked, a crown on the tooth may be the treatment. There are occasions when a tooth is damaged beyond repair and must be removed to clear up any infection.
No matter what the cause of your toothache, it’s very possibly one of the worst things you’ve dealt with. We know how to manage this pain and will help you take care of it as soon as possible. Until you can get in to see us, take ibuprofen for the pain and refrain from chewing or putting pressure on the affected tooth.
The cost of a root canal treatment comes second on the list of worries about root canal for most patients immediately following the fear of root canal treatment pain.
Whilst the treatment is still available for less than £100 via the NHS service root canal is known to be one of the more costly dental procedures if you’re being seen privately. There is no disguising the fact that root canal treatment can be costly but it’s not hard to see why. Root canal treatment involves a lengthy, very technical procedure which his best delivered by a root canal specialist, one which requires the specialist to invest in state-of-the-art equipment and materials.
We know that root canal prices can be a shock which is why we’ve worked hard to make our root canal prices extremely competitive. We offer a specialist root canal service which means we can compete against other practices in the local area.
Root canal costs will vary from case to case, it all depends on the extent of the root canal work you require. In general terms private root canal treatment costs as little as £480 for a single visit incisor root canal treatment and starts from f£650 for a single visit molar root canal treatment.
At AK Endodontics you can rely on us for transparency and reliability about the cost of root canal treatment. We provide you with the highest quality of specialist root canal care while making our root canal service as affordable as possible.
There is no need for your root canal treatment to be painful at all.
When your dentist first told you needed a root canal treatment like many people your first thought was probably to worry about the pain. There’s really no need, the good news is that all the stories about root canal treatment pain are mostly based on myth. In actual fact the root canal procedure itself should be painless. Any pain you’re feeling prior to the root canal procedure is usually caused by an infection in the tooth. The even better news is that the root canal will eliminate that pain and as it’s carried out under local anesthetic which completely numbs the tooth and the surrounding area there is no need for you to feel any pain at all
We will use a local anaesthetic and take every measure to ensure that your root canal procedure is in no way uncomfortable or painful. The usual post-anaesthetic feeling of numbness will completely subside after 2-3 hours. It is normal for teeth to be a little sore for a few days after your root canal treatment but the root canal treatment itself is painless.
The short answer is yes, root canal treatment can save your tooth if it’s performed in time.
To gain access to the pulp a small hole is prepared in the biting surface of the tooth. The dead and dying tissue is carefully removed using special instruments and the root canals are cleaned and disinfected.
A biocompatible filling material (gutta percha) is used to fill the specially shaped and disinfected root canals.
A temporary restoration is placed when the root canal is completed and you will return to your referring dentist for final restoration of the tooth.
There are some clear signals that you are likely to require root canal treatment.
These include:
Please note that these signs and symptoms do not always mean your tooth requires root canal treatment. The best step is to have your tooth assessed by your dentist before a referral to a root canal expert.
Root canal or endodontic, by the way ‘endo’ means inside and ‘dont’ means tooth, treatment is necessary when the inside or pulp of a tooth becomes inflamed or infected.
The inside of each tooth is very complex, they all contain more than one canal. The pulp – think of it like the heart of your tooth – contains blood vessels, nerves and soft tissues. This may be due to:
The pulp contains the nerves and blood vessels and is what keeps the tooth alive and allows you to perceive temperature change and pain. When the pulp is irreversibly damaged it causes toothache and severe pain. Root canal treatment is the last and best resort in these cases. Removing the pulp and disinfecting the pulp chamber means we are able to eliminate the pain and save the tooth. After a root canal treatment the tooth remains and still works but the pulp (nerve or blood supply) has been removed.
