Three Myths About Root Canals

Some myths about getting a root canal and the facts about those myths.

When it comes to going to the dentist, nobody is exactly lining up at the dentist door to be the first to get one, but it is a necessary procedure to save your tooth and it’s important that you understand the facts about your treatment so you don’t go into it more fearful or misinformed than you need to be.

There are a lot of myths swirling around this endodontic treatments including myth number one- it would be easier to extract the tooth than to fix it. This is simply not true. Yes, pulling a tooth is usually less pragmatic than repairing it but it also means you will need to replace the tooth with either a bridge or a dental implant at some point and these options are not cheap or ideal. The ideal option is to keep your natural teeth.

Myth number two is that root canals can be unsuccessful and you will have to undergo the procedure again. The majority of treatments are successful- as high as ninety five percent in fact, so the chances that you will need to undergo this treatment twice because of a treatment failure are very low.

Myth number three is that a pregnant woman should not have a root canal treatment because it increases the risk for the unborn baby. Not true. Now while it is recommended as a precaution that pregnant women wait until after the baby is born for elective dental work, endodontic therapy is not generally an elective option like teeth whitening is and there is a lot of wiggle room in that recommendation. Dental exams and treatment don’t poise any risk for an unborn baby and here’s why. The dental x rays needed for any treatment can be done safely by draping a protective shield over the patient. The level of radiation is very low and the protective shield will offer more than enough protection for both the patient and baby to be completely safe during the procedure. Other concerns that have led to the myth that a pregnant woman should avoid having a root canal include the concern that the anesthesia used on the patient will harm the baby. Again, simply not true. Your dentist can start with the lowest levels possible but it is vital that a patient be properly anesthetized for their own comfort level and the level of anesthesia needed for a dental treatment simply are not high enough to harm an unborn baby.

Finally the last root canal myth that may be making you fearful of your treatment visit- is the pain factor. Many patients believe that the pain will be too great and would rather deal with the dying tooth. In reality your mouth will be numb from the anesthesia and you will feel discomfort or pressure but not pain. Once your treatment is completed you won’t feel anything at all and that includes feeling pain.
So ignore the myths, embrace the facts and get that root canal done.

Article Tags: Root Canals, Root Canal, Unborn Baby

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