Root Canal Therapy

Following a thorough consultation, including review of your radiographs, a tailored treatment plan is developed by our specialists, which will outline the most appropriate course of treatment for your personal situation.

In many cases, endodontic therapy can be completed in 1-2 appointments, depending on the extent of the infection and your current state of oral and general health.

  • A latex rubber sheet called a dam is placed around the tooth being treated. This will protect your healthy teeth and surrounding tissue as well as ensuring an aseptic treatment field. For your comfort, a local anesthetic is administered to numb your tooth and surrounding area, making for a comfortable and painless procedure.
  • A small access opening is carefully made in the top of the tooth to enable the Endodontist to gently remove the infected pulp using specially designed root canal instruments.
  • Once the pulp is removed, your root canals are cleaned, disinfected and shaped.
  • The next step is to fill the root canals with a biocompatible material, usually a tiny cone-shaped rubber-like material called "gutta-percha". Gutta-percha is placed to ensure the root canals are completely sealed to prevent re-infection. Alternative biocompatible materials may also be used depending on the requirements of the case. A temporary filling is placed into the access opening at the end of each appointment unless a permanent core filling is chosen to be placed at the final visit.