Every natural healthy tooth has one or more roots with narrow canals inside called root canals.  The roots are what anchor teeth in place, while the canals are the tiny passageways inside.

The root canals branch off from the pulp chamber of the tooth and carry the nerves, veins, arteries, and lymph vessels that connect the inside of your tooth with the rest of your circulatory system.

The tissue in the pulp chamber and root canals is often called the "nerve" of the tooth even though it contains much more than just a nerve.

Why is Root Canal Treatment Necessary?

If the pulp tissue inside a tooth is damaged, then root canal treatment becomes necessary to save the tooth and prevent the spread of infection. The most frequent cause of damage to the pulp is a deep cavity, but there are a variety of other causes as well, such as tooth fractures or trauma.

When a cavity grows too deep near the pulp, the first response is pulp inflammation (swelling) that can cause tooth pain.  If left untreated, the pulp tissue loses vitality and becomes infected.  Soon after, an abscess forms at the end of the infected root canal and begins to spread.

After some time, the pulp tissue will completely die.  Once this happens, very often the pain will stop because the nerve of the tooth is dead.  That's when things get more dangerous.  A painless abscess can grow without any signs.  It can cause tooth loss, bone destruction, damage to neighboring teeth and worse.

What is Root Canal Treatment?

Once a tooth pulp is damaged, a series of destructive and painful events often follow if nothing is done.  To stop that process, the pulp tissue must be cleaned out, and the root canals must be sealed.

The picture shows what the tooth looks like after removal of the cavity and all infected pulp tissue (chamber and root canals).

After the pulp chamber and root canals are cleaned, disinfected, and dried, the root canals will be filled with "guttapercha" and sealed using a special cement.  Guttapercha is an inert rubber-like substance made from natural tree rubber and other materials.

When the root canal treatment is completed, a temporary filling is placed until a post and crown are constructed to protect the tooth and finalize the treatment.

The tooth is usually allowed to rest for a few days before treatment for the post and crown is started.  During this time it is important not to chew on the newly root canal treated tooth.

After successful root canal treatment, in time, the abscess will heal, and new bone will fill in the space.  In certain cases an additional minor surgery may be necessary to treat the abscessed area. 

Is Root Canal Treatment Painful?

The goal of many root canal treatments is to relieve the pain of toothaches caused by pulp inflammation or infection.  With modern techniques and anesthetics, most patients are quite comfortable throughout the procedure.

For the first few days following treatment, the tooth may feel sensitive compared to other teeth, especially if there was pain or infection before the procedure.  (See the pain control page for information on pain relief.)

In general, root canal procedures are painless and simple.

"But I've Heard Horror Stories about Root Canals!"

In our office, we perform dozens of root canal procedures every week.  The stories we hear from our patients are anything but horror stories.  Patients are pleasantly surprised at how simple of an experience it really is.

In certain rare, exceptional cases, where an infection was allowed to grow for too long, and a patient's fear is heightened, we use additional sedative procedures (e.g. nitrous oxide) to ensure complete comfort before any treatment is performed.