“Root canal therapy” is one of those phrases that can strike fear into the heart of even the bravest patient when their dentist says it is necessary. However, the treatment is nothing to be scared of and is essential to save an infected tooth. Without it, your tooth could have to be extracted.

Perhaps a bad past experience has made your nervous about root canal therapy, or perhaps someone has told you an exaggerated horror story. At our Guildford dental practice we use the latest dental techniques and equipment that enables us to offer pain-free root canal therapy that can be completed in a single appointment (as opposed to the traditional two).

Ironically enough, if you don’t have root canal therapy, more serious and uncomfortable conditions such as painful dental abscesses can arise if the infection spreads.

Why your dentist will prescribe root canal therapy

Root canal therapy is necessary when the pulp or nerve at the centre of a tooth becomes infected. This can happen through dental decay or through accident or injury, and tooth ache is one of the most common symptoms. This infection can spread into the root canal system of your tooth, which may be fairly simple in a front tooth or fairly complex in a back tooth. The purpose of root canal therapy is to remove all traces of infection before sealing the tooth.

This is a skilled and complex procedure that requires a 1.5 hour appointment to ensure we have time to complete the whole procedure in one session. Dentist Dr Paul Cunningham is highly experienced in the delicate art of root canal therapy and enjoys providing the treatment, especially as many patients are surprised that it is entirely pain-free.

Under local anaesthetic Dr Cunningham will access the root canal system of the infected tooth and will carefully clean it with the latest rotary-ended equipment. He will fill the tooth with white or tooth-coloured filling material, and in many cases will cap the tooth with a crown to give it additional strength.