A.
Root canal
is done to remove the infection and seal the canals in the tooth. This can often be done in one visit.
Sometimes two or three visits are needed depending on the individual tooth and degree of infection.Q. Does a root canal hurt?
A.
Root canal
treatment is done in the case of an infected nerve. Usually a tooth having root canal treatment can be
made numb with a local anesthetic and it doesn't hurt at all. Sometimes, a tooth with an infected nerve does not react
to Novocain as well as a normal tooth and takes more work to get it completely not sensitive.
Q. I had a root canal and then my tooth broke. Why did that happen?
A. The
root canal
treatment was fine. The problem is the tooth was weakened by prior decay and required a
cap to
fix the tooth. If that was not done, the tooth. even with a successful root canal, can break.
Q. Why do people need root canal?
A.
Root canal
is needed due to an infection in the tooth. This is usually due to an extremely deep cavity or, less often,
due to a blow to the tooth. A tooth could have a deep cavity and the doctor might not know that the tooth needs a root
canal because nothing shows in an x-ray and the patient has no pain. Then, a week or a year or many years later,
something may show up in an x-ray or the patient could report pain. If that happens, root canal treatment would be
done at that time.
