Root Canal Treatment (RCT)

The success of a Root Canal Treatment largely depends on the effectiveness of shaping, cleaning and sealing of the roots inside the teeth.
By employing sophisticated equipment coupled with the best in class dental material(s), we ensure that these steps are carried out with the highest possible precision leading to a very high success rate.

Following are the answers to several of your questions on root canal treatment:

What causes the need for a root canal treatment?

It all starts with not taking care of your oral hygiene. If you brush & floss after meals, you can greatly reduce the chance of needing a root canal treatment. In most cases, it starts with food deposits inside your mouth that leads to bacterial proliferation and in turn enamel erosion and tooth decay. If you are regularly visiting a dentist, the dentist will remove the decay and fill the cavity eliminating the chances of a root canal treatment. However, if you miss visiting a dentist, the decay will eventually reach the nerves and pulp inside the tooth and then the only option is a root canal treatment. Avoid using toothpick as it damages the gums increasing the chances of food deposits apart from many other complications.

Tooth injury and trauma is another cause of needing a root canal treatment so be careful.

What are the signs and symptoms that point towards a root canal treatment?

Most patients call us when they are under tremendous pain, but there are early signs and symptoms that point towards the possibility of a root canal treatment, do not wait for the pain to be unbearable. Some signs and symptoms are:

• Tooth sensitivity to hot and cold
• Pus discharge and/or a boil in the gums around the tooth, bad breath
• Swelling in gums and/or face
• No pain but darkening of tooth

Also, I have observed in my practice that patients take antibiotics and pain killers, find temporary relief and avoid visiting the dentist and they keep doing the same every time the pain returns. Please do not do this as it will lead to more complications and will eventually affect surrounding teeth.

How do you make a final diagnosis for root canal treatment?

As a first step, Dr. Anjana will make a record of the past treatments, symptoms, duration of pain, location and self medication. She will then follow it up with a clinical examination, x-ray and checking the vitality of the sensory nerves in the pulp by applying a cold spray and also undertaking an electric pulp test to check the response.

What is treated in a Root Canal?

We treat the pulp inside the root of the tooth which is a collective term for the nerves, blood vessels and tissue that supplies nutrients to the tooth during the formation of the dentine and the hard outer layer called enamel. When the enamel and dentine is compromised due to decay/injury, the bacteria infects the pulp and then we need to remove the infected pulp by undertaking a root canal treatment.
Since the nerves and tissue are microscopic, Dr. Anjana exclusively uses a microscope for this precise and delicate procedure.

How is the root canal treatment done?

The aim of a root canal is to remove the infected pulp from the root of a tooth, disinfect effectively and then seal the empty root space with a filling material.

• We start the treatment with taking a x-ray followed by numbing the tooth.
• Once the tooth is fully numb, we isolate it by placing a rubber dam and drill through the enamel to reach to the pulp.
• We then meticulously remove the nerves from each root and disinfect them with copious irrigation and flushing.
• Once we are confident that all infection is removed, we use a three dimensional molten material to seal off the root system.
• The final step is to place a cap/crown over the tooth to restore its functionality while in some cases a simple composite filling will be enough.

Is the root canal treatment painless?

Dr. Anjana strives to make this treatment as painless as possible. An injection is used to numb the area around the tooth and that is when you will most likely feel a prick. Once the tooth is numb, you should not feel any pain. Please check out our Painless Dentistry page for more information.

How many times will I need to visit to complete the root canal treamtment?

The number of visits required to complete the Root Canal Treatment depends on the severity of the infection and the complexity of the procedure. In simple cases, a root canal can be completed in one sitting however that is not the aim. The aim is to remove the infection rather than rush and hope. Dr. Anjana focuses more on the treatment than time to ensure the several years of decay in your tooth is removed properly and the treatment lasts a lifetime.

What is the success rate and life of a root canal treated tooth?

The success of a Root Canal Treatment largely depends on the effectiveness of shaping, cleaning and sealing of the roots inside the teeth.
With a combination of her clinical experience, sophisticated equipment and best in class dental materials, Dr. Anjana ensures that the above mentioned steps are carried out with the highest possible precision leading to very high success rates.
You can check out how we make Root Canal Treatment safer, efficient and more precise at our clinic.
We also strongly advice to maintain an excellent oral hygiene and visit us every six months to ensure that no other complication is developing around the treated tooth.

Is there any alternate to root canal treatment?

No, if the roots are infected, then root canal treatment is the only option. With her extensive training, Dr. Anjana has saved many a teeth that were severely decayed and in normal cases would have been extracted.

How do I prepare myself for a root canal treatment?

Root Canal treatment is a routine procedure and no special preparation is required. You can have a meal before root canal treatment and also take medicines that Dr. Anjana may have prescribed. We will numb the tooth before the procedure to make it painless and then proceed with the actual treatment.

What is the post operative care that I need to take after a root canal treatment?

We have written a detailed post operative root canal treatment care for your quick reference.