Root Canal Treatment

At Redlands Gentle Dental Care we offer patients root canal treatment to save a tooth

Root canal treatment, provided at our practices in Victoria Point and Capalaba, is a safe and virtually painless treatment for retaining a tooth that is inflamed and causing you pain. This treatment involves the dead or inflamed pulp to be removed from inside the tooth. Dental pulp is the soft tissue that runs through the centre of a tooth. One question we are asked a lot is: “doesn’t a tooth need pulp to survive?” The answer is no, not once the tooth is fully developed. In fact once the tooth is fully developed the tooth can function normally without the pulp. After the infected, or inflamed, pulp is removed, the canals of the tooth are cleaned, sterilised and shaped so they can be completely sealed. The tooth is sealed with a filling material to prevent further infection.

How many appointments does root canal treatment need ?

The number of appointments necessary will depend on the severity of your tooth’s condition. For minor cases one or two appointments will be fine. For a more severely affected tooth it will take considerably longer (three to four treatments). Especially if a tooth needs a dental crown after root canal therapy. Our team would only recommend a dental crown if you have had extensive treatment. The dental crown will protect and strengthen your treated tooth.

This is another reason why general check-ups are so beneficial

The easiest way to prevent the need for root canal therapy is regular dental check-ups. If decay is detected early it can be removed and the tooth saved with a filling. A filling is less invasive, more cost-effective and doesn’t involve removing all the pulp from your tooth: and it only takes one appointment.