What is a Root Canal
& the Restorative Process
Each tooth has a root canal which is composed of blood vessels and nerves which supplies a tooth with nutrients which are essential for growth during childhood and to maintain healthy teeth through adulthood.
For any number of reasons, such as a deep cavity or a broken tooth, the root canal can become damaged or infected. Left untreated, one can lose the tooth.
Simply speaking, a root canal procedure is just a little more extensive than drilling and filling a typical cavity.
This is how we perform a root canal and most often we can repair the tooth and install a new crown to cover and protect the tooth in the same day, since we make our crowns in our own laboratory.
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Your tooth and surrounding tissues are numbed for your comfort with lidocaine. You also have the option of using nitrous oxide (laughing gas) or sleep sedation (IV) to relax you and eliminate pain. Most dentists in the area do not offer sleep sedation as a pain and anxiety relieving alternative. (Read about sleep sedation here.)
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We remove your tooth's nerve or pulp from the pulp chamber and the root canal. The canal is cleaned, shaped and disinfected before it is filled.
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We generally place medicine in the canal to help combat or prevent infection.
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A rubber-like material is then filled in the canal to seal it.
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We create a custom-made crown in our lab to cover the tooth and make it look like the original tooth.
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You go home. If you choose sleep sedation, you will need a ride from a friend or relative (not Uber or Lyft).
The root canal/same-day crown service provided by Carson & Acasio is such a benefit to our patients as one doesn't have to return for a second procedure to remove the temporary crown and place the permanent crown.
The bottom line is that we don't wish for you to be concerned or nervous when we suggest that you undergo a root canal procedure. The treatment is no more painful than filling an ordinary cavity. Most of all, we want you to be completely relaxed and comfortable, and we want to be able to complete the procedure in one visit.
The end goal is to save your tooth, and at the same time restore dental functionality and provide a natural looking appearance.
