What if a root canal fails

How do you know if you need root canal treatment? What to do after a failed root canal treatment? What are the symptoms of a bad root canal? Why are root canals bad? A root canal fails when a tooth that has been previously treated with a root canal procedure becomes infected at the root.

If this infection is allowed to continue to develop without proper treatment, the infection can potentially spread to other teeth in the area or cause illness in other parts of the body.

The procedure involves in the removing of the damaged area of the upper tooth , pulp, cleaning and disinfecting the region and then filling and sealing it with a cap. Most cases of root canal treatment failure involve a situation where infection has reestablished itself inside the tooth. To perform a root canal , the dentist drills a hole in your tooth in order to expose the pulp cavity, the central chamber in your tooth that contains the nerve, bloo and lymphatic tissue that supplies your tooth with life-giving oxygen and nutrients. Tiny files are then used to remove the contents of this cavity.

Root canals will fail if a small amount of bacteria is missed and it is packed into the tooth. The bacteria will continue to multiple and eat away at the tooth. When the root of the tooth is remove the tooth is now considered weak and can break over time.

Root canal complications can cause a failed root canal , but the tooth has usually a second chance. If the treatment has failed , the dentist will evaluate the condition of the tooth and the reasons of the root canal complications, in order to decide if the tooth can be saved.

A root canal is likely to have failed if symptoms begin again and this can happen many years after the treatment was completed. Symptoms may be pain, tenderness on biting, swelling of the gum overlying the roots , increased mobility or the presence of sinus pus. Lets assume the root canal was properly cleaned and disinfected. Typically our office does a resin buildup at the same appointment as the root canal to seal the canals from the oral cavity. If the root canal is not properly seale you risk.

For the first few days following the completion of a root canal, the tooth may feel sensitive due to natural tissue inflammation, especially if there was pain or infection before the procedure. This sensitivity or discomfort usually can be. Caries or gum disease can develop on the roots of a treatment tooth, just like any other natural tooth. Previous root canal treatment can become reinfected for a variety of reasons.

If conventionaal root canal therapy is not possible, an apicoectomy is an option to save the tooth. A small incision is made in the gum tissues at the level of the infection allowing the infection and root tip to be removed. The best way to recognize the symptoms of a failed root canal is simply to remain in close contact with your dentist.

She should be keeping track of your development after the procedure and will know if something goes wrong. Many symptoms of a failed root canal resemble simple side effects from a successful root canal. A failed root canal will begin to hurt and could cause pain through a noticeable abscess tooth. Root canals are treatments for infections that affect the root or pulp of the tooth. Infections result in pain, dead tissue or even abscesses.

Breakage of file during root canal procedure: Accidental breakage of file during cleaning and shaping of canal during root canal treatment can cause infection in root canal treated tooth and failure of root canal treatment. If canals are sterilized and clean before breakage of file in tooth, then it doesn’t cause any symptom otherwise broken file in canal can lead to pain and infection later on.

However, few root canals fail today because of advances in dental and radiograph (X-ray) technology. Having said that, it is important to know that the dentist performing the root canal therapy is well qualified to do so. While all dentists do touch on root canals as a normal part of their training,.

In this case, an old root canal that has failed is draining pus and infection from the tooth. As the picture shows, the drainage presents as a pimple on the surface of the gums on the outside surface of the tooth. The canal has to be thoroughly cleaned to the end of the tooth for treatment success. A root of the tooth also can develop a crack which makes it impossible to seal the canal and prevent infection from re-entering the tooth. Read more about fractured teeth.

Treating a failed root canal : For many of these problems, re-treating the tooth may solve it. Three of them involve performing some type of endodontic retreatment procedure. Endodontic treatment, commonly known as root canal treatment, is needed when the pulp becomes inflamed or infected.

New decay can expose the root canal filling material to bacteria, causing a new infection in the tooth. A loose, cracked or broken crown or filling can expose the tooth to new infection. A tooth sustains a fracture.