What Procedures Does an Endodontist Perform?

Have you ever wondered what an endodontist does? You may think they are similar to dentists and orthodontists in that they work with the mouth area, including the gums and teeth. That’s true to a certain extent, but endodontists work on more specific problems in oral care involving the root structure of the tooth.

At Advanced Endodontics, we provide a wide range of services to our clients, both adults and children, in the central Florida area with our five locations. Let’s look at the procedures we perform at Advanced Endodontics by our talented team of endodontists who are truly root canal specialists and so much more.

Apicoectomy (Surgery)

This is the type of root end surgery that takes place after a traditional root canal has failed and there is an infection deep within the structure of the tooth. The root tip is first removed. Then we fill the root end cavity with biocompatible material. Luckily with digital imaging and operating microscopes, this procedure can be done comfortably and quickly for the patient.

Therapy

Many people hear horror stories about the pain experienced during “old school” root canals. Don’t worry, that’s not the case anymore with the technology available to perform non-surgical root canal therapies. We are able to save the tooth by going in to remove the damaged pulp. It’s not any worse than getting a regular filling for a cavity at the dentist.

Tooth Retreatment

This type of procedure occurs on the rare occasion that the tooth didn’t heal properly after root canal therapy. That’s when our endodontists go back in to re-clean, replace, and re-seal the canal. We do this in order to save the natural tooth.

Internal Bleaching

Sometimes after a root canal procedure, the tooth will become discolored over time. The best way to fix the color of the tooth, to make it match the others in your mouth, is with a single tooth internal bleaching process. A small hole is created, filled with bleach, and sealed. This bleaches away the discoloration that may have occurred from the blood or other fluids leaking into your tooth during the original root canal procedure.

Internal Resorption

When there is trauma to the tooth, a condition called internal resorption can happen. This can only be diagnosed with imaging x-rays and a cone beam CT scan. In simple terms, the tooth is decaying from the inside out. The decay needs to be quickly removed to stop any further damage from happening. The procedure is similar to a traditional root canal.

External Resorption

This is a procedure that fixes the external root of a tooth that has been damaged. Sometimes it’s been knocked out during an unfortunate accident and replaced, but the root surface of the tooth needs extra treatment to be healthy. It’s a very rare condition that requires the removal of the internal nerve (root canal) followed by a root repair surgery.

Apexogenesis

This is a procedure for children that needs to have a root canal but their roots have not matured yet. We start the treatment by removing the top portion of the nerve while keeping the rest of the root nerve alive.  We monitor the patient every 6 months to make sure the root continues to grow properly. This process can take over a year to monitor as your child’s mouth develops.

Apexification

Another procedure that is for our littlest patients is apexification. This is what we perform when there is an injury or trauma to a young permanent tooth in order to save it. It’s done over a few appointments where our experts put a material; calcium hydroxide, inside the root canal to get rid of infections or damage. This effectively seals the end of where the tooth is decaying to stop tooth loss.

Contact Advanced Endodontics

If you need any endodontic procedures done, look to the best at Advanced Endodontics. We provide the utmost care to make our offices a place of comfort, give exceptional treatment, and provide convenience to all our patients.

Contact us today For more information or to schedule an appointment with one of our endodontists.