01727 800372
Been told you need a root canal?
At UK Dental Specialists, our dentist in St Albans is proud to be able to offer a range of dental procedures, everything from dental implants to root canals, to help you get and retain the smile you have always had or wanted.
But is a root canal the best option for you? Here, our dentist in St Albans discusses the top advantages of this endodontic treatment versus a standard extraction.
Pain-free
OK, so our dentist in St Albans knows that you may have heard that a root canal is uncomfortable.
But compared to the post-extraction pain of having a tooth removed, along with the risk of infection and gum inflammation, any discomfort that you may feel is minimal!
Efficient
So you’ve had an infected tooth and want to have an extraction over a root canal as it seems simpler. But is it?
An extraction can cause the surrounding teeth to destabilise, leading to orthodontic issues. When you add this to the need for a restorative like a denture, bridge or dental implant to bring back some bite to your teeth, it is far from a simple solution.
With a root canal, you get to keep the original tooth, there is no destabilisation of surrounding teeth and you are left with a smile that looks visually no different. Therefore it is a more efficient procedure!
Visually appealing
As mentioned before, when you have had an infected tooth, there are typically two choices; the first is a root canal and the second is an extraction.
While extraction may not seem like such a bad idea, if the affected tooth is at the front of your mouth, this can create an obvious aesthetic issue. As a root canal does not turn your tooth black, it is the more favourable of the two treatments for an infected or damaged tooth, as it leaves your tooth as it was before the infection, with a composite (white) coloured crown or filling.
Restorative
As you may have gathered by now, a root canal is a mixture of being an aesthetic solution to an infected tooth, and it is also a restorative.
When we finish filling the tooth after we have cleaned the pulp, we will close the entrance to the root canal with either a filling or a crown. This seals the entrance to the work we have done, but also aids in the restoration process. Remember, post root canal, the tooth is likely to be a bit weak and by filling the canal with a putty-like substance and placing a filling or crown on top, we can ensure that your tooth’s strength is restored.
Long-lasting
With correct aftercare and dental hygiene, a root canal treatment should easily last the rest of your life.
Remember, you will need to see our team every 6 months after the root canal has been performed, so we can check that it is holding its position and that no other issues are occurring. If at any time you notice that the tooth that has had the root canal starts hurting, then please contact our team urgently for an assessment.