Root Canal Treatment
New York, NY
 Root Canal Treatment, also known as endodontic treatment or therapy, is a dental procedure that we perform when the inner portion of a tooth has become infected or inflamed. Patients who come to us with this dilemma are often in considerable pain, our goal is to alleviate that pain by removing the source of the infection and restoring the tooth’s function and health.
Dr. Del Valle and Dr. Shahgoli generally oversee the more complicated cases that require root canal treatment, whether the infection is more complicated to remove or the patient’s situation requires extra care. Our team at Manhattan Maxillofacial Surgery Group can examine your case and create a treatment plan that is right for you.
Why do I need a Root Canal?
To better understand a root canal, knowledge on the inside portion of the tooth is needed. The dental term, endodontic, refers to the inside portion of your tooth which is filled with the pulp of the tooth. The pulp is a blend of living cells consisting of blood vessels, connective tissues and nerves. During the formation of your tooth, the pulp was necessary for its growth, but once the tooth is fully formed, the pulp is no longer necessary. Pulp becomes infected due to bacteria finding passage. This may be due to:
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A deep cavity: Decay that has been left to linger, will continue to cause problems for your teeth. As the decay extends through the enamel, the dentin, and then into the pulp, this leads to a larger restoration. |
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Fracture: Whether tiny hairline fractures caused from bruxism or larger fractures from impact injury, any cracks leave space for bacteria to find passage inside your tooth. |
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Multiple Restorations: Teeth that have been worked on multiple times are vulnerable to infection. From the filling material not filling the entire space, or bacteria being missed, infection can occur. |
If the pulp becomes infected, it will not be able to heal on its own. Ignoring the pain will not make it go away, the infection can only be relieved through extraction or root canal therapy.
What is a Root Canal?
The dental procedure of a root canal begins with numbing the patient. Though this procedure is often associated with pain, we are not causing pain, we are relieving it. Dr. Del Valle or Dr. Shahgoli will first gain access inside the tooth. They will then remove the entire pulp of the tooth, along with it, the infected material. The canal is cleansed and then filled with a medicated rubber material. The tooth is closed up with a filling material and a customized dental crown is ordered. In most cases, the tooth will require a crown to provide it additional strength after we reduced its strength from going inside. Once the crown is placed, your tooth is restored in shape, size, and durability.
Most of the patients that we see at Manhattan Maxillofacial Surgery Group are referred to us after a standard root canal procedure with their family dentist has failed. A failed root canal is not from faulty work, but because in some cases, a root canal can be a difficult procedure. Though we tend to think of the root as being a singular space, there are actually many tiny branches that extend from the root where the source of the infection could be. If this is the case, the patient is sent to us for a Apicoectomy.
Apicoectomy
To remove the infected material from the branches of the root, Dr. Del Valle or Dr. Shahgoli will need to surgically remove the tooth’s root tip. Apicoectomy is sometimes known as Root End surgery. We remove the infected material found near or around the tip of the root by removing the entire root tip, restoring the tooth’s health and function.
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