Molar Root Canal Therapy in Maryville, TN

Having an infected tooth is a pain (pun intended). Not treating an infected tooth is an even bigger pain- it can also lead to tooth loss. While so many patients express fear at the dreadful sound of  a “root canal”, we always remind them that this procedure is not what causes the pain. Instead, the infection within the tooth is the cause of the pain. Due to anesthesia, root canal therapy itself is actually painless.

Root canal therapy is an excellent alternative to extraction. This procedure saves the natural tooth and protects it from future bacteria attacks. Once patients are able to get past the unwarranted fear of a root canal, they often have many questions concerning the process. At Kim C. Norman Dentistry we offer root canal therapy for all teeth, including the molars! Root canal therapy for molars are a bit more complex than other areas of the mouth. In this article, we will explain some of the differences between molar root canal therapy and root canals performed in other areas of the mouth.

Things to Know About Molar Root Canal Therapy

Your molars are important- no question about it. These teeth are the main teeth used in eating and losing these teeth causes that “sunken in” look associated with old age. So when a molar is infected, your dentist will do everything in their power to save it instead of extract it. However, there are some additional factors that both you and your dentist need to tackle during this procedure. Here are a few of those factors.

1. Molars are harder to access than other teeth.

The molars are located in the back of the mouth. This makes the tooth much harder to access and perform dental work on. This makes the process of a molar root canal much more complicated for your dentist than on other areas of the mouth.

2. Molar root canal therapy will take longer.

Most teeth have one canal. This makes it easier to flush out the infection. Unfortunately, molars can have two, three, four or even five canals! This makes the procedure much longer. Root canals in teeth with one canal often are performed in one appointment that lasts less than one hour. However, molar root canals often take over an hour and sometimes need more than one appointment.

3. Molar root canal therapy may cost more.

Procedures are priced due to their complexity and the time it takes to complete them. Therefore, molar root canals will often cost 30 to 40% more than root canals in other areas of the mouth.

At our office we don’t just perform root canal therapy on molars- we perform this procedure on all teeth! For more root canal therapy facts, click here. To learn more about molar root canal therapy visit our office at Kim Norman Dentistry for the Individual in Maryville, TN or call us today at (865) 982-9662!

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