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Root Canal Treatment
No, not necessarily. Root canal treatment is carried out under local anaesthetic. Once the tooth has been numbed up sufficiently, the procedure is painless.
There can be exceptions if the tooth is very severely infected and cannot be numbed up adequately. In these cases, the dentist might prescribe medication first to reduce the severity of the infection and pain before the tooth is treated.
First of all, a root canal treatment is carried out over 2 or 3 appointments as there are 3 different stages in the procedure. The first 2 stages can sometimes be combined into one single visit. The length of each appointment depends on which tooth is being treated. Teeth at the back of the mouth (molars) are harder to access and have more roots than teeth towards the front of the mouth (premolars, canines, incisors). Hence back teeth are more complex to treat and the appointment time might be longer. A typical appointment length for each stage can vary from 45 minutes to 1.5 hours, depending on complexity and operator experience. After the root canal treatment is completed, further appointments are usually necessary to rebuild the tooth with a filling or a crown.
At the Melbourne Smile Clinic, we believe in providing adequate time for optimum treatment outcomes and patient comfort. We ensure our patients are iprovided with a treatment plan and are well-informed prior to starting any procedure.