Some time ago, endodontic treatment, popularly known as "root canal", was not the most pleasant dental procedure. The treatment time was quite long and not very pleasant. Currently, this process has been significantly shortened, and appropriate anesthesia makes it virtually painless. Very often, endodontics is the basis for further treatment, e.g. prosthetic or microsurgical. However, the condition is that the procedure be performed correctly. What complications may await us if an inexperienced dentist performs this procedure incorrectly?
Root canal treatment is nothing more than cleaning the tooth canal from the pulp that has become incurably inflamed and filling it with an appropriate material. A properly treated tooth remains in the mouth for a very long time, and the effect of treatment is visible after half a year. This is a very precise procedure that, if performed incorrectly, may pose many risks. It is very important not to skip any of the stages during root canal treatment:
- Poisoning and removal of the nerve - it is very important to do it carefully and not to leave a fragment of the nerve in the canal
- Mechanical and chemical preparation of the tooth interior - the doctor properly shapes the canal and rinses it with chemical agents that disinfect and improve the treatment effect
- Drying and filling of the canals - a properly performed procedure requires a fully dried canal before its filling and reconstruction stage
- Radiological control – we check whether the canal is filled correctly using an X-ray
- Tooth reconstruction within the crown – after root canal treatment, teeth darken and weaken, so it is worth considering the use of veneers or a porcelain crown
The basic mistake made by inexperienced dentists during the process itself is underfilling or overfilling the canal and perforating the bottom of the chamber or the root. Inadvertently, the tool may break and be left in the canal, or the tooth crown may be fractured. The doctor's failure to respond to mistakes made may result in later complications.
The most common early error is not filling the canal, which leads to chronic inflammation. However, overfilling the canal leads to resorption - absorption of the material by the tissues, which may result in improper healing and tissue inflammation. Let us remember that only tightly filling the tooth cavity with a biocompatible material will create appropriate conditions for the healing of the changes that have occurred.
In case of perforation, inflammation may occur, thinning the adjacent bones. This is a long process, visible some time after the procedure. Perforation may also lead to chronic periapical inflammation caused by the penetration of bacteria and toxins from the canal into the tissues. Unfortunately, late complications are most often detected accidentally when taking an X-ray.
There is also a risk of the tool breaking in the canal during preparation or filling. As a consequence, this will cause pain, swelling and even the occurrence of an abscess, which will need to be treated with antibiotics, and after the symptoms disappear, remove the remaining part of the instrument and close the canal again.
Since root canal treated teeth are most often very damaged, an inexperienced dentist may inadvertently break the damaged tooth crown, which in turn leads to the need to rebuild part of the crown if the fracture is partial, or to rebuild the entire crown using prosthetic procedures.
Endodontic treatment, although nowadays supported by the latest technology, is not a simple procedure. By putting yourself in the hands of an inexperienced dentist, you may expose your health to serious damage. However, by using the services of dentists from professional dental centers, we can be sure that the procedure will be well performed. Additionally, we can monitor the course of treatment ourselves by asking our dentist to take an X-ray and show us the canal being filled. In the photo we will see a tooth and a white line in place of the canal. If it is visible along the entire length of the canal, it means that the procedure was performed correctly. If the white line does not reach the end of the canal, we may question the correctness of the procedure and ask the doctor to fill the canal again. The photo will also show whether there are any broken pieces of tools in the canal. Remember that we take a photo to assess whether the procedure was performed correctly, so let's take a moment to look at it to make sure that everything is in perfect order.