Five Myths About Root Canals: Debunked!

Root canals are horrible experiences. You’ll be spitting out cotton and drooling all over yourself for days. You’re going to be stuck with metal teeth like that evil henchman in that one James Bond movie. Outside of childbirth, root canals represent the worst pain humans can experience.

Some of the things you’ve heard about root canals may be… exaggerated, to put it mildly.

A root canal – known to dentists as endodontic therapy – is the removal of nerves and pulpy tissue from the inside of the tooth. It’s required when a cavity has progressed well into the interior of the tooth, and most often is needed to alleviate serious pain and infection, as well as to save the affected tooth.

Endodontic therapy is a relatively painless procedure, but it does last a bit longer and requires more steps than a standard cavity filling, which has led to several myths surrounding it. Let us debunk a few of those myths for you:

MYTH: Root canals hurt like heck.
FACT: Chances are, it’ll hurt a lot more if you don’t get root canal therapy. If the pulp in your teeth becomes infected, that infection may cause one of the worst and most persistent toothaches you’ve ever had. With proper anesthesia – and there aren’t any dentists left who don’t use proper anesthesia – a root canal shouldn’t hurt very much at all. After the procedure, the only pain might come from some very light bruising of the gums that occurs during the therapy.

MYTH: Root canals are inevitable. Some people just have bad teeth.
FACT: Nope. Root canals are perfectly preventable – the best way to avoid requiring one is to floss regularly, brush your teeth at least twice a day, and have your teeth professionally cleaned about once every six months.

MYTH: Root canals result in tooth loss.
FACT: Quite the opposite is true – dentists often perform endodontic therapy to prevent extractions. During the procedure, the dentist will remove part of the top of your tooth, which he or she will replace with a crown or an onlay. But the roots will stay in place, and you’ll keep the tooth.

MYTH: I don’t need a root canal; painkillers and antibiotics will take care of the problem.
FACT: If you have an infected tooth that flares up occasionally, over-the-counter painkillers, or even more powerful prescription drugs, might take the pain away. And antibiotics might curb the infection somewhat. But only endodontic therapy, which clears all of the infected tissue out of the tooth, can remove the infection entirely. An unattended infection can result in a serious abscess, which could damage the surrounding bone.

MYTH: Root canals are just a way of lining your dentist’s pocket, since they require four or five visits to complete.