Do root canals equal pain?
“Anything that happens inside your mouth is magnified,” Witte says. “For the dentist your mouth may be a small space to work in, but for me it’s the Grand Canyon!” Despite the horror stories circulating about root canal treatments, the truth is most root canals are virtually painless today and can be completed in just one visit. A recent survey found that patients who have experienced root canal treatment are six times more likely to describe it as “painless” than patients who have not experienced a root canal treatment. In fact they are no more uncomfortable than getting a filling replaced, providing they are performed by a skilled endodontist. Looking back in time, standard dental practice in the 1700s was to pull natural teeth instead of saving them. Primitive root canals consisted of cauterizing or searing the tooth with a hot iron and covering it with foil. Thankfully we have come a long way since those days. “Years ago root canals were difficult procedures to do – both for the en
