Root Canal

Root canal treatment can take one or more appointments to complete. A temporary filling is usually placed to protect the tooth between appointments, but taking these precautions will protect your tooth and ease any post-operative discomfort.

Your lips, teeth and tongue may be numb for several hours after your appointment.  We recommend NOT chewing at all on the tooth for several days.  It needs to heal, so avoid chewing on it for 3-5 days. Avoid chewing hard until the numbness wears off. We don’t want you unknowingly chewing on your inside cheek or lip!

It is common and not a problem for a small portion of the temporary filling to wear away and break off between appointments. If the entire temporary comes out, contact our office at your earliest convenience so we can replace it.

It is normal to experience some soreness for several days after a root canal appointment, especially when chewing. To alleviate discomfort, take pain medication as directed. If antibiotics are prescribed, continue to take them for the indicated length of time, even if all symptoms of infection are gone.

To further reduce pain and swelling, rinse three times a day with a salt water solution (one teaspoon salt in a cup of very warm water). To protect the tooth and help keep your temporary filling in place, avoid eating sticky or hard foods (especially gum) and if possible, chew on only the opposite side of your mouth.

It is very important to continue to brush your teeth normally, but floss very carefully. To prevent removal of the temporary, remove the floss by pulling it through the teeth, not up and down or up from between the space between the teeth.

We will almost always recommend a crown to protect your tooth, now that it has had a root canal. A post root canal tooth is very brittle and fragile, and more prone to breaking or fracturing.

Please call our office if your bite feels uneven, or if you have persistent swelling or pain.