Root Canal

What happens during a root canal?

During a root canal, your dental professional will remove a section of root from inside your tooth. They will clean the area as thoroughly as possible to remove any infection. Once they've eliminated the infection, they will fill the resulting hole with a composite material that hardens to the same density as your tooth.

A temporary crown will be put in place to allow the tooth to heal. After a few weeks, if no other infection appears, they will replace the temporary crown with a permanent one. With the permanent crown in place, you'll be able to do the same things you normally do in regards to eating and cleaning your teeth.

What causes a root canal to fail?

Root canals are used to remove infections that have made their way deep inside the teeth themselves. During a root canal, your dental professional will attempt to remove all of the infection found within the tooth. This can be difficult to do because of all the tiny channels where it can hide. In most cases, a root canal fails because a small amount of infection was able to hide in areas where your dentist couldn't reach.

If the infection reappears, your dentist can remove the temporary crown and make another attempt to locate and remove the rest of the infection. If a root canal fails, your symptoms will normally reappear within a day or two of the first procedure.

How long is the recovery time for a root canal?

A root canal can take anywhere from one to two weeks to start the healing process. Every person will heal at their own rate. You may heal quicker than your neighbor because you are in generally better health than they are. Even though the interior of your tooth has been repaired, the surrounding tissues still may have more healing to do.

If your symptoms persist after the first few days of the procedure, your dentist may need to perform an additional procedure. If the root canal is successful, your symptoms will gradually begin to disappear within the first day or two. It's important to notify your dental professional if these symptoms are still present after the first few days.