Root canal treatment is a procedure that replaces a tooth’s damaged or infected pulp with a filling. The ‘pulp’ is a sensitive tissue that provides oxygen, nutrients and feeling to the tooth. It is housed in the hollow centre of a tooth (pulp chamber), along with blood vessels and nerves. Once a tooth is fully formed, nutrition for the tooth comes from the tissues surrounding the root, and the tooth can function without its pulp.

During root canal treatment, the pulp is removed from a tooth. The dentist cleans and shapes the root canals with a drill and small files. The tooth’s interior is cleaned, dried and packed with a filling material that goes all the way down to the end of the root.

An artificial biting surface is created for the tooth out of dental amalgam, composite material or a crown. This also protects the tooth from fracture, which can occur after root canal treatment. A root canal may need to be performed over a number of appointments.