Root canal treatment removes infected or inflamed pulp from inside a tooth, cleans and seals its canals, and lets you keep your natural tooth instead of extracting it. At MDS Dental it is done under local anaesthesia and rubber dam isolation, with rotary instruments and low-radiation digital X-rays, usually in one or two visits.
When is a root canal needed?
- Pain to hot or cold that lingers after the drink is gone
- Pain when biting, or a tooth that feels "high"
- Swelling, or a small boil on the gum near a tooth
- A tooth that has turned darker after an injury
- Deep decay or a crack close to the nerve on an X-ray
Sometimes there is no pain at all and the infection is found on an X-ray. An examination and a digital X-ray tell us whether a root canal, a filling or something else is the right treatment.
How it is done
- DiagnosisAn examination and a digital X-ray (Vatech RVG) show the decay, the roots and any infection at their tips.
- Numbing and isolationLocal anaesthesia, then a rubber dam: a thin sheet that keeps saliva and bacteria out of the tooth and protects your airway.
- Cleaning and shapingThe infected pulp is removed and each canal is cleaned and shaped with rotary instruments and disinfecting rinses.
- SealingThe canals are filled and sealed so bacteria cannot return, and the tooth is closed with a filling.
- Protecting the toothMost back teeth then need a crown, because a root-treated tooth is more likely to crack under chewing forces.
Why a crown afterwards?
A root canal treats the infection, but the tooth is often weakened by the decay and the access opening. Back teeth in particular take heavy biting forces, and studies of root-treated molars and premolars show they last longer when they are covered with a crown. We usually place a zirconia crown within a few weeks of the root canal.
Root canal or extraction?
Keeping your own tooth is usually the better choice when it can be restored: it keeps your bite and the bone around it, and you avoid a gap that would later need an implant or bridge. When a tooth is cracked through the root or too broken to rebuild, we explain the options honestly, including extraction and a dental implant.
Who will treat you
Dr. Prajakta Sawant (BDS) provides painless root canal treatment at MDS Dental Care & Orthodontics, Badlapur, with more than 10 years of clinical experience.