Some Common Queries

Continuing with the common problems that patients have.. 

Today i have decided to come out with Root Canal Problems...

DOES ROOT CANAL HURT?

         This is the most common question that i am asked from everyone.. including Non Patients also.. and when i say it doesnt.. Patients become all the more suspicious..:)

 Root Canal Doesnt Hurt... Period... 

                  With proper anesthesia root canals can be a pain free procedure. Most teeth respond to regular local anesthesia injections. For Maxillary (upper teeth) dentists usually employ a combination of buccal infiltration and a palatal injection. For Mandibular teeth(lower teeth)a mandibular or mental block is used.

               Some teeth do seem to be hypersensitive at the time that root canal is started and patients still can report some sensitivity when a dentist attempts to access the pulp chamber. When this happens I sometimes use an additional intrapulpal injection in order to achieve complete anesthesia. Usually this injection does the trick for my patient and their endodontic procedure can be completed without further discomfort.

Can Successfully treated Root canal tooth experience occasional Pain/ Tenderness?

            Sometimes root canal treated teeth, that we consider a success, do have some "low grade inlammation ". The teeth are not infected but are not entirely without tenderness.

          Another possible explanation of continued symptoms it that some teeth have a small undetected crack and heavy chewing may cause some small movement of the the crack.

         If symptoms are disturbing sometimes a retreatment of the root canal can cause the tooth to become less symptomatic. After all, most of our check radiographs are two dimensional and do not show the root canal system as it acutally is. Small discrepencies in the 3-D fill also may be responsible for symptoms.

          Also for these types sometimes we do have an additional sitting or two.. But normally Root Canals are generally done in single Sittings.

Do ask me If any query on Dental problems is there... Would like to help it out..