by Dr. Jacqueline S. Allen | Apr 4, 2025 | Root Canal
When a tooth gets injured or infected, you just want the pain to stop. Tooth extraction can sound like an alternative to a root canal, especially when only one tooth is
involved. However, it’s important to look beyond the moment when a natural tooth is at risk.
Sometimes an extraction is the only choice because the tooth is cracked or injured, or because the decay is pervasive. Often, though, endodontists can repair a damaged natural tooth with root canal treatment. Let’s review a few reasons why saving a natural tooth through a root canal is better than having it extracted.
Root Canals Vs. Tooth Extractions: Which Is Best?
- Root canals protect your natural teeth from further damage. Root canal treatments thoroughly clean and disinfect the roots of your teeth. The final step also prevents infection from returning by filling the tooth canals with biocompatible material and placing a crown.
- Root canals keep your natural smile. Dentures, dental implants, or bridges – types of restorations used following tooth extraction – don’t function or look as well as your natural teeth. Endodontists can use root canals or related endodontic treatments to save even badly damaged natural teeth.
- Missing teeth result in cascading dental problems. One extracted tooth can cause your remaining teeth to shift. Multiple extracted teeth can result in bone loss in the jaw and a noticeable “sag” in the lower third of your face. Keeping your natural teeth prevents this.
- Root canals may actually be less painful! Despite what many people think, today’s root canal treatments are usually done under local or IV sedation anesthesia and have little or no pain afterwards. According to the American Association of Endodontists, patients who undergo root canals are six times more likely to describe the experience as painless than those who opt for tooth extraction.
Call Our Office For An Initial Consultation
At Phoenix Endodontic Group, our skilled staff can review your case to determine the best plan for preserving your natural teeth. Call us at 602-242-4745 to make an appointment. We offer emergency treatment options during or outside of regular office hours.
by Dr. Jacqueline S. Allen | Mar 10, 2025 | Dental Emergency, Dentistry, Endodontist
Like any medical emergency, dental emergencies require your quick response. If you have an injured tooth, it’s important that you see an endodontist immediately.
You should call 911 and head to an emergency room if an injured tooth has caused an abscess and you are having trouble breathing or swallowing, or if your jaw is broken. Otherwise, call your endodontist for an emergency appointment. At Phoenix Endodontic Group, we can provide emergency care 24/7, so call as soon as you need us, day or night.
Here is a quick guide to ways an endodontist might repair a tooth injury.
How Endodontists Treat Common Tooth Injuries
- If you come to your endodontist with a chipped or cracked tooth – they may recommend reattaching the tooth part with bonding material, placing a crown on the tooth to protect it from further damage, or performing a root canal if the crack in the tooth caused injury to its nerve.
- If you present with a dislodged or knocked-out tooth – they will want to know how recently the injury occurred. Teeth that have been knocked out of the mouth can sometimes be successfully placed back in the mouth if the patient sees an endodontist within 30 to 60 minutes of the incident. Avoid touching the root surface of the injured tooth and handle it carefully. For dislodged teeth, it may be possible for the endodontist to push the tooth back into place and stabilize it. Dislodged teeth sometimes also require root canal treatment.
- If you come in with a horizontal fracture – they will take images to determine the location of the fracture. A fracture near the tooth’s root may be able to be treated with a stabilizing splint, and possibly a root canal. A fracture across the root closer to the gum line is harder to treat and may result in the tooth having to be extracted.
Following many tooth injuries, your endodontist will recommend an annual check for root resorption, where your body rejects the injured tooth and dissolves the tooth root structure.
Don’t Delay – Call Our Office Immediately About Your Injured Tooth
Never delay treatment of an injured tooth. Call us at 602-242-4745 to make an appointment. Our practice offers emergency treatment options to ensure you can get the right treatment when you need it.
by Dr. Jacqueline S. Allen | Feb 5, 2025 | Cracked Teeth, Dental Pulp
Our natural teeth have a tough outer layer of enamel, but it’s not impenetrable. Underneath the enamel and dentin lies dental pulp (soft tissue, nerves and blood vessels). Pulp carries nutrients and blood to enamel and underlying dentin to keep teeth alive and healthy. Cracks, chips or erosion of tooth enamel allow bacteria to enter the tooth, causing dental pulp concerns.
Endodontists are specialists who focus their dental practice on preserving natural teeth and treating problems with dental pulp. Let’s look at what happens when dental pulp becomes inflamed and explore how endodontists treat these issues.
Understanding The Impact Of Dental Pulp Infections
Pulpitis refers to an irritation of dental pulp. Endodontists use diagnostic procedures such as electric pulp testing and tapping tests to determine the extent of the inflammation.
Reversible pulpitis happens when the dental pulp is alive and the natural tooth can recover. The infected pulp can be removed and a normal filling placed in the tooth to prevent further damage.
Unchecked, it becomes irreversible and the natural tooth cannot recover without more invasive treatment. The pulp may actually die, a condition known as pulp necrosis. A severe infection in the pulp can spread and cause an abscess if not treated. Abscesses can lead to life-threatening complications, so getting endodontic treatment fast can be life-saving.
How Endodontists Treat Pulpitis
Treatments for pulpitis fall into three major categories: treatments that can limit the damage; treatments that replace dental pulp with a biocompatible alternative; and treatments that involve removing the natural tooth.
For pulpitis in early stages, an endodontist may remove the damaged pulp and add a crown to resolve the issue. If the condition becomes irreversible, though, they will perform a root canal to remove all of the affected tooth’s dental pulp, clean the tooth roots and replace the pulp with gutta-percha or a similar filling.
If the outer structure of the natural tooth cannot be strengthened with a crown and/or a post and core, tooth extraction may be the only remaining option. It may be replaced with a dental implant or bridge.
Your endodontist can answer questions about how to treat your dental pulp infection and what the prognosis is for saving your natural tooth.
Call Our Office For A Dental Pulp Evaluation
If you’re concerned you may have a dental pulp problem, call our office at 602-242-4745 for an evaluation. Our practice offers 24/7 emergency treatment options to ensure you can access the right treatment whenever you need it.
by Dr. Jacqueline S. Allen | Jan 5, 2025 | Dental Fear, IV Sedation
Anxious about facing a root canal? A 2019 survey by the American Association of Endodontists reported that more Americans surveyed feared having a root canal (59 percent) than feared holding a live snake in their lap (53 percent) or swimming with sharks (41 percent).
Root canal anxiety is a subset of a more general anxiety concerning dental treatment. Since delaying or avoiding root canal treatment can lead to natural tooth loss or abscessed teeth, it’s important to have a plan for confronting (and overcoming!) your fears.
We have five great tips to help you overcome root canal fears and set yourself up for success.
Tips To Overcome Anxiety About A Root Canal Treatment
- Accept that your anxiety is real. There are many reasons you may feel nervous. Perhaps you experienced pain with a dentist, or are embarrassed by your teeth. An abuse history may amplify your concerns. None of these conditions make you “bad.” They simply suggest you’ll benefit from extra support preparing for your root canal.
- Figure out which part of a root canal is most triggering. Try to break your root canal anxiety into smaller chunks. Are you afraid of having your mouth opened? Of having no control over the procedure? The sounds and smells? Once you know, share it with your personal support team – including your endodontist – so they can help you manage the fear.
- Try root canal anxiety-reduction techniques recommended by others. Dental Fear Central is a clearinghouse website filled with tips for dealing with dental anxiety and phobia. There’s a special FAQ section for anxiety related to root canals.
- Explore mindfulness meditation. Researchers at Harvard University have affirmed that meditation focusing on “being present” in the moment can reduce anxiety symptoms. Dr. Ron Siegel, assistant professor of psychology at Harvard, offers free, short guided mindfulness meditations on his website.
- Ask your endodontist about IV sedation. At the Phoenix Endodontic Group, we offer IV sedation as an option for root canals, emergency dental treatment and dental implant surgery. We find this can sometimes be the best option to support our patients’ comfort.
Never Fear – We Can Help With Your Root Canal Anxiety
Don’t let fear, myths about root canals, or prior experiences keep you from treatment. At our practice, we explain what to expect during and after treatment – and how we can work together for a stress-free experience. Call us at 602-242-4745 to schedule your appointment.
by Dr. Jacqueline S. Allen | Dec 5, 2024 | Tooth Abscess
When you have a toothache, you don’t care why it hurts – you just want it to STOP. Many toothaches are caused by an abscessed tooth, which is a pocket of pus (infection) located near your tooth. Visiting an endodontist can not only help end the pain, it can also help you strategize to maintain your long-term dental health.
Tooth Abscess Causes And Symptoms
A tooth abscess happens when the nerve-rich pulp inside your tooth becomes infected. Such an infection can have many causes, including:
- A cracked or chipped tooth
- Severe, untreated tooth decay
- Gum disease spread to the tooth roots
- A dental injury exposing the nerve pulp to bacteria
Once a dental infection, regardless of cause, progresses to an abscess, your symptoms may include:
- An open, draining sore on your gums, or a “boil” near your tooth
- Swollen, red gums
- Bad breath
- Gnawing or throbbing pain
- Pain that radiates into your neck, jawbone, or ear
- Bitter taste in your mouth
- Fever and a general feeling of illness
An endodontist will use X-rays or other imaging tools like Cone Beam Computed Tomography (CBCT) to evaluate your teeth and see whether the tooth abscess is located at your tooth’s root, near the bones and ligaments supporting your tooth, or in the gums around your tooth.
Treating A Tooth Abscess The Endodontic Way
The most common treatment to save an abscessed tooth is a root canal. At the Phoenix Endodontic Group, we use the leading-edge GentleWave treatment system to thoroughly clean and remove infected tooth pulp. An endodontist fills the tooth roots with gutta-percha or another biocompatible substance. Later, a general dentist will add a crown to provide permanent structural support to the tooth.
Call Us About Your Tooth Abscess ASAP
If you’re worried your toothache may be due to an abscessed tooth, call the Phoenix Endodontic Group at 602-242-4745 to arrange an appointment. Infected teeth can pose a serious risk to your health. We offer 24/7 emergency care, so if you’re in pain, call right away!
