Service 01
Root Canal Treatment.
The procedure with the worst reputation in dentistry and, done properly, one of the most comfortable. It ends the pain and it keeps your tooth.
What It Is
Treating the inside, saving the outside
A root canal does not remove your tooth. It removes the damaged tissue from inside it.
When the pulp inside a tooth becomes inflamed or infected — through deep decay, a repeated dental procedure, a crack or a knock — it cannot heal on its own. Left alone it dies, the infection spreads through the root tip into the surrounding bone, and you end up with an abscess and, eventually, an extraction.
Root canal treatment interrupts that. The pulp is removed, the canal system is disinfected and shaped, and the space is filled with an inert material and sealed. The tooth is dead in the sense that it no longer has a nerve supply — but it is still held by a living ligament, still anchored in living bone, and still yours.
When you are likely to need one
- Lingering pain after something hot or cold — more than a few seconds
- Pain on biting, or a tooth that feels "high"
- A deep ache that wakes you at night or throbs when you lie down
- Swelling of the gum, a persistent pimple, or a bad taste
- A tooth that has darkened compared to its neighbours
- No symptoms at all — some infections are only found on an x-ray
The Appointment
What we actually do, step by step
Nothing here is a surprise on the day. If you would rather not know the details, skip this section — we will simply narrate it as we go.
Diagnosis
Cold and electric pulp testing, percussion and palpation to confirm which tooth is responsible — referred pain is common and treating the wrong tooth helps nobody. A digital radiograph, and a cone beam scan where the anatomy warrants it.
Anaesthesia
Topical gel first, then local anaesthetic delivered slowly. We test the tooth before beginning and top up if there is any doubt. A hot tooth can be harder to numb — we have supplementary techniques for exactly that, and we use them.
Isolation
A rubber dam is placed over the tooth. It keeps saliva and bacteria out of the canals, keeps irrigants out of your mouth, and means you can relax your jaw instead of holding it open around instruments.
Access and locating the canals
A small opening is made through the biting surface. Under the microscope every canal orifice is located — including the extra canals that are easy to miss and that cause most failures.
Cleaning and shaping
Rotary nickel-titanium files shape each canal to its full working length, measured electronically with an apex locator. Between every file the canal is irrigated to dissolve tissue and kill bacteria. This is the part that determines the outcome, and it is the part we refuse to rush.
Filling and sealing
The dried canals are filled with gutta-percha and a sealer, compacted so no space is left for bacteria to recolonise. A temporary or core filling closes the access.
Back to your dentist for the crown
A treated back tooth needs full cusp coverage — usually a crown — within a few weeks. This is not optional; the most common cause of losing a successfully treated tooth is a fracture because the crown was delayed.
Afterwards
What to expect for the next few days
The tooth will usually feel tender to bite on for two or three days, sometimes up to a week, as the ligament around the root settles. That is normal and it is manageable with ordinary over-the-counter painkillers — ibuprofen works particularly well here unless you have been told not to take it.
- Chew on the other side until the permanent restoration is placed
- Brush and floss the tooth normally from the same evening
- Wait until the numbness fully wears off before eating
- Call us if swelling increases, or if pain gets worse rather than better
We will check the tooth radiographically at six to twelve months to confirm that the bone around the root tip has healed. That recall appointment is included.
Toothache now? Do not wait it out.
Infections do not resolve on their own, and an early root canal is a much simpler one.