Educational Material

Grandville Endodontics is open Monday through Friday from 8:00 am until 5:00 pm. We will make every effort to schedule your appointment as promptly as possible. If you have pain or an emergency situation, every attempt will be made to see you on the day you contact us.

We try our best to stay on schedule to minimize your waiting. Due to the fact that Grandville Endodontics provides endodontic services, various circumstances may lengthen the time allocated for a procedure. Emergency cases can also arise and cause delays. We appreciate your understanding and patience.

In certain situations, an initial consultation appointment will be required in order to determine the need for root canal treatment.  In other situations, your dentist may refer you for the consultation and root canal treatment to be completed on the same day.  In most cases, root canal treatment will be completed in one visit.  In more complex cases, more than one visit may be required.

This form, Notice of Privacy Practices, presents the information that federal law requires us to give our patients regarding our privacy practices.

Endodontic (Root Canal) Treatment:  At the center of your tooth is pulp.  Pulp is a collection of blood vessels and nerve trunks that help to provide nutritive, sensory, and protective functions. Infection of the pulp can be caused by trauma to the tooth, deep decay, cracks and chips, or repeated dental procedures. Symptoms of the infection can be identified as visible injury or swelling around the tooth, sensitivity to temperature, or pain in the tooth and gums. During root canal therapy, the damaged pulp in the canals of your tooth is removed, the canals are cleaned, and filling material is placed into the canal. This procedure can save teeth that would otherwise require extraction.  The development of modern techniques has greatly reduced the discomfort associated with root canal therapy.  We provide gentle local anesthesia to eliminate discomfort.  In addition, we will provide nitrous oxide gas if so desired. 

When your root canal therapy has been completed, a record of your treatment will be sent to your referring dentist. You should contact their office for a follow-up restoration within a few weeks of completion at our office. Your referring dentist will decide on what type of restoration is necessary to protect your tooth. For the first few days after treatment, your tooth may feel sensitive, especially if there was pain or infection before the procedure.This discomfort can be relieved with over-the-counter medication such as 600-800mg of ibuprofen every 6-8 hours or 1000mg of acetaminophen (Tylenol) every 6 hours. In certain situations, a prescription medication may also be prescribed. We are available at all times to respond to any questions you may have.

With the appropriate care, your teeth that have had endodontic treatment will last as long as other natural teeth.   Yet, a tooth that has received treatment may fail to heal or pain may continue to exist.  Improper healing may be a result of complex tooth anatomy, undetected canals from a previous treatment, delayed placement of crown/restoration following the endodontic procedure, or contamination inside the tooth because of leakage around a crown/restoration.  Sometimes, the pain may occur months or years after treatment.  If so, endodontic retreatment may be needed. 

Once retreatment has been selected as a solution to your problem,the doctors will reopen your tooth to gain access to the previous root canal filling material. The doctors will remove the old root canal fillings, reclean your canals, and carefully examine the inside of the problematic tooth.  Once cleaned, the doctors will fill and seal the canals and place a temporary filling in the tooth.  At this point, you will need to return to your dentist as soon as possible in order to have a new crown or restoration placed on the tooth.

Apical surgery is generally recommended when an infection persists at the root tip following endodontic therapy or when nonsurgical endodontic retreatment is not an option.  Through surgery, the doctor will make an opening in the gum tissue near the affected tooth and remove the inflamed tissue at the end of the root.  A small filling will be placed to seal the root end.  The doctor will then place a few stitches to encourage healing. 

This treatment can help lighten a tooth that has been discolored due to diseased pulp.

Apexification

This treatment is used when there is no healthy tissue left within the canal.  It encourages hard tissue to form near the root tip, "closing" the root.  This hardened tissue provides a barrier for the root canal filling. At this point, the root canal walls will not continue to develop, making the tooth susceptible to fractures. So it is important to have the tooth properly restored by your dentist.

Apexogenesis

This procedure is used when some healthy tissue remains in the canal and encourages the root to completely develop as the pulp heals.