Whenever I suggest Root canal Treatment as a treatment options patients ask me two questions What are the side effects of root canal treatment? two, Is root canal treatment safe? Let's answer the common myths about root canal treatment on our blog.
Read What is Root canal treatment? to know more about the treatment.
Let me start by saying that everything, meaning everything we do has its advantages and disadvantages. In medicine, a particular treatment form is selected because the advantages weigh over the disadvantages.
Myth#1 Root canal treatment is painful
Root canal treatment is not painful. Root canal treatment is done under Local anesthesia and the procedure itself is not painful. Once, the anesthesia effect wears off you might feel some pain or discomfort, this should be easily managed by pain-killers prescribed by your dentist. If your pain/ discomfort is not tolerable or lasts longer than expected please call or visit your dentist.
Myth#2 Root canal treatment makes my teeth dead
Short answer No. Most often root canal is done on a tooth with an infected or inflamed pulp, such teeth are already dead or are dying. by getting a root canal treatment your dentist cleans this infection/ inflammation and stops it from spreading further in your jaws. Even though the infected/ inflamed pulp is removed the blood and nervous supply around the tooth remain intact.
Myth#3 Removing a tooth is better than getting a root canal treatment
Tooth removal should always be considered the last resort. There are 2 reasons why extraction should be avoided. One, it results in the loss of your tooth, and second, replacement of the tooth costs more than root canal treatment. Also, nothing feels or functions like your natural tooth.
Myth#4 Root canal treatment is not safe for kids
Be it milk teeth or permanent teeth and regardless of the age of the patient, pulp therapy or root canal therapy is required when the pulp tissue gets infected. The dentist cannot do a filling on this tooth because the filling doesn't clean the infection inside the pulp. The materials and solutions used in root canal treatment are 100% safe and tested and are used in appropriate concentrations.
Success rate of root canal treatment is about 86-98%, which means only about 2-14% of root canals fail.
To summarise Root canal is a safe procedure. Modern and advanced root canal treatment has a good success rate and does not harm or cause any disease. Millions of Root canal treatments are performed by dentists all over the world in a year.
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