Root Canal Treatment

Root canal treatment is required when the pulp or tissue within the tooth becomes infected.

Root canal will remove the infected tissue and will be replaced by filling material, which will save the tooth and prevent further pain and infection.

Most root canaled teeth require a crown to restore strength and longevity.

When a dental pulp becomes infected, this infection can spread through the roots of the tooth and will produce pain. This infection can cause an abscess and subsequently swelling and more pain. The gums around your tooth will be inflamed and the tooth may be difficult to bite on. Root canal will save the further spread of infection and the loss of a tooth.

The time to complete root canal can vary from 1 to 6 hours depending on the complexity of the case. At Dental & Skin we offer multiple appointments to ensure both patient and dentist are comfortable.

We also offer review appointments to see how patients are getting on after treatment and to ensure treatment was successful.

Root canal treatment is beneficial as it maintains your natural smile and prevents the loss of the tooth.

Root canal treatment is almost painless and can even be less painful than having a tooth extracted.

Patient’s don’t have to worry about the appearance of their smile after root canal, as a crown can be made to be aesthetic in appearance as well as most root canaled teeth lasting a patient’s lifetime.

A root canal treatment is very similar to having an ordinary filling done. Patients rarely experience any pain due to the effectiveness of local anaesthesia.

Patients are 6 times more likely to describe root canal treatment as painless than those who have had a tooth extracted.

A root canaled tooth often becomes brittle and requires the support and strength of an onlay or crown to restore normal chewing activity.

Molars and back grinding teeth most typically require a crown as they experience the majority of our chewing force. The teeth at the front of the mouth that we use for tearing typically do not require a crown.

Root canaled teeth most likely to require a crown are those that are broken and have lost tooth structure as well as patients who grind their teeth may need a crown.

Root canaled teeth that are at less risk of fracturing will be suitable for a dental onlay.

At Dental & Skin we offer a range of materials for your dental onlay or crown that are durable and aesthetic in appearance to improve your smile. This means that our patients do not have to worry about their root canaled tooth discolouration after treatment.

We only occasionally find a well-executed root canal treatment to fail. The most common reasons being; poor cleanliness of materials, poor shaping and filling, poor choosing of cleaning agents, non-sealing restoration and allowing saliva to infect canals during treatment.

We occasionally find root canal treatment to fail despite optimum care because of the type of bacteria causing the infection are resistant to the current materials and techniques.

The Dentsply Wave One Gold Nickel Titanium files used to prepare root canals at Dental & Skin, enables our dentists to perform successful and efficient root canal treatment.

The Gold Nickel Titanium is highly flexible with its streamlined shaping technique and a greater cutting efficiency.

There are four different sizes which accommodates for greater canal complexities alongside a higher safety margin by using files that are resistant against fatigue.

Private root canal treatment offers a more personalized service compared to that of the NHS. Private practices can offer longer appointment times, more time with the patient and therefore combats the `why does root canal fail?’ question above.

Private practices don’t have any funding restrictions and often have advanced techniques and materials to optimise patient experience.

Private practices also prioritise the cosmetic result of treatment and can offer a variety of materials when going ahead with dental crowns and onlays.

A huge advantage of private practices are that they can work around your work schedule with evening appointments, compared to the 5pm close of NHS practices.

Root canal can only be performed by a highly trained practitioner. From our dentists personal past experience, they have a low failure rate of 2%. This means you are in safe hands when it comes to root canal treatment at Dental & Skin.

Our dentists have in depth knowledge, use the latest techniques and have successfully completed numerous root canal treatments.

At our Islington clinic we also offer review appointments and evening appointments. We work around your work schedule and will check up on patients to ensure they are happy with their treatment.