The experienced dentists here at St Andrews Dental Practice will always aim to preserve your own natural teeth so that patients do not have to lose their teeth.

Root canal treatment helps save teeth and restore smiles by removing infection that has collected around the root of your tooth. This treatment is required when decay in your tooth or under an old filling has spread into the nerve supply and along the root canal system. Symptoms such as sharp shooting pain, radiating pain on pressure, earache, and headaches are commonly experienced.

Root canal treatment is carried out under local anaesthetic; therefore, no pain will be felt. The infected nerve supply is removed with specific instruments. Once the canals are disinfected and shaped, they are then filled with a rubber-like material, sealing any voids. The tooth is then filled. Originally, nutrients and blood are supplied to the tooth via the nerve supply. In root-treated teeth, the nerve has been removed, and therefore, the tooth is more susceptible to fracture. In some cases, it is advised that the root-treated tooth be crowned to protect it from damage.