After a Root Canal Treatment
As with all dental treatment, aftercare is very important to the long term success of root canal treatment
What to do and what to expect
Your lifestyle is usually not much affected by the root canal treatment itself (though it might be influenced by the events that caused the tooth to need a root canal treatment in the first place, for example, if a front tooth was broken). A few simple but very important points to note are :
Pain or discomfort after the treatment
In our experience the majority of patients do not feel any pain or discomfort after a root canal therapy. However this is not universal and it is prudent to be prepared just in case. We find that patients with the following situations are more likely to experience some after-effects :
** We have (thankfully only very rarely) encountered situations where a patient initiated a root canal treatment and then failed to return for the follow up treatment for many months or even years.Then the patient returned with problems in the tooth. In some cases the tooth is no longer treatable and in other cases the situation has become more severe and requires much more complex treatment.
What to do and what to expect
Your lifestyle is usually not much affected by the root canal treatment itself (though it might be influenced by the events that caused the tooth to need a root canal treatment in the first place, for example, if a front tooth was broken). A few simple but very important points to note are :
- Be careful not to bite your lip/cheek/tongue which will most likely still be numb in the immediate aftermath until the numbness subsides
- You should take all mediation as prescribed
- Ensure that you attend follow up treatment/review appointments (**) Root canal treatment almost always part of a multi - visit treatment plan. It is critical to follow through with the treatment properly
- Avoid biting hard on the root canal treated tooth especially if the filling in the tooth is a temporary.
- If it is difficult to floss do not force the floss. If there there is a temporary filling that extends between the teeth flossing might not be possible due to the filling contour. This is a temporary situation that is usually eliminated when the permanent restoration is placed.
- if the tooth or temporary restoration breaks contact us immediately
Pain or discomfort after the treatment
In our experience the majority of patients do not feel any pain or discomfort after a root canal therapy. However this is not universal and it is prudent to be prepared just in case. We find that patients with the following situations are more likely to experience some after-effects :
- infection has already spread to into the gum around the root tip region
- complex root canal structure
- where there were procedural difficulties during the treatment
** We have (thankfully only very rarely) encountered situations where a patient initiated a root canal treatment and then failed to return for the follow up treatment for many months or even years.Then the patient returned with problems in the tooth. In some cases the tooth is no longer treatable and in other cases the situation has become more severe and requires much more complex treatment.