Teeth consist of a crown and one or more roots. The crown is the part you see. You can't see the roots. They are anchored in the jaw under your gums. There is a canal in each root, the root canal. It contains nerve fibers and small blood vessels. This living tissue is also called pulp. If the tissue is or has been inflamed, the dentist will perform a root canal treatment.

Tooth decay or a leaking filling can cause your tooth tissue to become inflamed. A hard blow to your tooth can also be a cause. Bacteria are usually the cause of the inflammation. Do your teeth or molars feel sensitive when drinking cold or hot drinks? That could be a first signal. Sometimes the inflammation does not cause any complaints, but severe pain also occurs. Your dentist must remove the inflamed tooth tissue or it will die. When the tooth tissue is not removed, the inflammation can spread to your jawbone. As a result, jaw bone around the teeth can be lost. Eventually, so much jaw bone can disappear that the teeth become loose or even fall out. You notice an inflammation of the jaw bone when you close it. Your tooth or molar may then feel too high.

During a root canal treatment, the dentist removes the inflamed tooth tissue. Inflamed tooth tissue no longer heals. It is an irreversible process. That is why your dentist removes the inflamed tissue. A root canal treatment is also called canal or nerve treatment.

The root canal treatment
The root canal treatment is performed under local anesthesia if your tooth tissue is still (partially) 'alive'. An anesthetic is sometimes not necessary if your tooth tissue has already died. Often your dentist will take one or more x-rays. This way he has good control over the course of the treatment. Your dentist first opens your tooth and removes the inflamed tissue. He then cleans the canal with small files and rinses it with a disinfectant rinsing fluid. Then the channels are filled. After the root canal treatment, your dentist closes your tooth with a filling. If the tooth is weakened, a crown may be needed. A tooth that has been treated in this way can last for a long time.

Sometimes your dentist cannot perform a root canal because there are additional problems. It may happen that the tooth or molar has to be removed. You can discuss the possible solutions for the replacement of your lost tooth with your dentist. For example, consider a bridge.

A root canal treatment is usually not painful with an anesthetic.

The duration of a root canal treatment depends on the number of root canals. Teeth usually have one root. Choose often have more. The treatment time therefore varies from half to one and a half hours. The dentist can often complete the root canal treatment in one go. Sometimes you have to come back several times.

After cleaning the root canals, you may experience pain that can last for several days. You can suppress the pain with a good painkiller. An antibiotic is usually not necessary.

A tooth or molar usually does not discolour after a root canal treatment. If any discoloration does occur, your dentist can usually correct it. There are several options for this. Ask your dentist for advice.