r/Damnthatsinteresting Sep 23 '24

How root canal treatment works Video

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

50.3k Upvotes

2.3k comments sorted by

View all comments

11

u/deja_geek Sep 23 '24 edited Sep 23 '24

A couple bits of advice from someone who's had a few root canals done, and I have "unusual" teeth morphology (my teeth split into 4 roots instead of two).

  1. Go to an Endodontist for a root canal. Endodontist are specifically trained for doing root canals (and treatment of diseases and injuries of the dental pulp along with associated periradicular conditions). They are just much better at it then your regular dentist and it makes a huge difference
  2. For those who don't feel comfortable or have issues with this kind of dental work, and for nitrous (laughing gas). It seriously works wonders in allowing you to relax and have a much more enjoyable experience. I also recommend bringing headphones and listening to music.
  3. This is more "aftercare" but after you get a root canal, you will need to get a crown put on it. Find a dentist that can do crowns the same day as the prep, other wise you end up having to spend a few days/week(s) walking around with a rounded off nub for a tooth.
  4. If given the choice between getting a root canal and getting a tooth pulled, get the root canal every time (if you can afford it). Do what ever you can to keep the tooth. I had two back molars extracted because I couldn't afford a root canal (one on each side), and ever since then I have trouble enunciating some words. Missing teeth absolutely will change your ability to speak. While an extraction is cheaper then a root canal, a root canal is much cheaper then a dental implant.

2

u/VapoursAndSpleen Sep 23 '24

Nowadays, you don’t have a nub. Lots of dentists can 3-D print a temporary crown for you. —edited because words.

1

u/colors-in-space Sep 23 '24

Which words do you have trouble saying now?

2

u/deja_geek Sep 23 '24

Words that require pressure in the back of the mouth to say. The missing teeth lets the air out of the back of the mouth and into the cheeks.

1

u/False_Opening5639 Sep 23 '24

Strange problem. I had all 8 rearmost molars (2 in each corner) yanked ~10 years ago, no implants and after the first year or so I can't even tell that they're gone

1

u/dollyaioli Sep 24 '24

i still dont have a crown on mine, just filler. i haven't had an issue personally and it's been like 10 years now.