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I have been told over the years to only have an Endodontist do my root canals as I have had only 2, however I am with a new dentist now and I have a tooth that probably needs a root canal and he will most likely want to do it. I know many general dentist do Root Canals but should I allow him or ask for an endodontist?
I have always had the dentist do the root canals with no problem. The only time I went to an endodontist was for a tooth in a very difficult position, and he had special equipment to get at it.
Our dentist will do root canals, but says that if it's needed in a back molar, those are harder to access and he might well refer those to an endodontist.
I have never heard of a dentist that does not do root canals, nor has anyone in our family had them done by anyone other than our main dentist. I personally, have never had to have one.
I have never heard of a dentist that does not do root canals, nor has anyone in our family had them done by anyone other than our main dentist. I personally, have never had to have one.
All dentists are trained to do root canals in dental school, just like they get training in fillings, dentures, crowns, extractions, and (in most cases) implant restorations. However, not every dentist can be awesome at every procedure that they are taught despite how much they practice. The beauty of private practice general dentistry is that the dentist can offer services they feel the most comfortable with to their patients and, for procedures they are not comfortable with, refer their patient to a doctor who is so that the patient gets the best treatment. I tell my patients flat out that you don't want me doing a root canal on you, because I suck at them but I know several doctors who do them fabulously and I can send you there. If you need an implant, however, then I'm your man. The important thing is for the doctor to know their limits. Some dentists offer root canals in their practices, but can tell from an x-ray that a particular root canal might be beyond their skill level and thus refer them to a specialist. Same goes for extractions, dentures, etc. No shame at all - the doctor is doing the patient a service by sending them to the appropriate person. Where things go bad is when a dentist tries to be "jack of all trades, master of none".
My adult son was referred to a endodontist for a root canal on his first molar because the procedure needed to be done with a microscope. The endodontist did a CT scan and used a microscope for the procedure, he found 4 roots and and two accessory canals (I hope I got the terminology right)
My dentist wont do them at all . Another dentist I know won't touch any that are bad/on back molars and that seems to be common. They both can do them, they just know it's better for the patient to have a specialist do it.
The endodontist I had was great and I am thankful my dentist suggested him.
I have never heard of a dentist that does not do root canals, nor has anyone in our family had them done by anyone other than our main dentist. I personally, have never had to have one.
Hope you never do, they're plain miserable. Most of the dentists I've ever gone to also did root canals, but within the last couple years I've run across a couple dentists who don't, they said they refer all root canals to endodontists. I've had one (and I hope, the last) root canal, when I was on vacation visiting family some years ago. That wasn't planned, but came about when a bad tooth flared up, with intense pain I had to do something about, turned out there was an abscess under the tooth. I went to my mother's dentist-he was in practice with his dad, the endodontist, so he's who did my root canal.
The dentist we currently go to will do root canals, but he says if they're needed in a back molar he may refer the person to an endodontist. When I was looking for a new dentist ( when we first moved here, before I found our current dentist), I spoke to the office manager of another dentist who informed me that the dentist there did not do root canals.
All dentists are trained to do root canals in dental school, just like they get training in fillings, dentures, crowns, extractions, and (in most cases) implant restorations. However, not every dentist can be awesome at every procedure that they are taught despite how much they practice. The beauty of private practice general dentistry is that the dentist can offer services they feel the most comfortable with to their patients and, for procedures they are not comfortable with, refer their patient to a doctor who is so that the patient gets the best treatment. I tell my patients flat out that you don't want me doing a root canal on you, because I suck at them but I know several doctors who do them fabulously and I can send you there. If you need an implant, however, then I'm your man. The important thing is for the doctor to know their limits. Some dentists offer root canals in their practices, but can tell from an x-ray that a particular root canal might be beyond their skill level and thus refer them to a specialist. Same goes for extractions, dentures, etc. No shame at all - the doctor is doing the patient a service by sending them to the appropriate person. Where things go bad is when a dentist tries to be "jack of all trades, master of none".
Sounds fair to me. I currently go to a dentist who's in practice here with his wife. I've never met her, but was told by the office staff there that she does not pull teeth. I would imagine that is just personal preference for her, but I think there is enough work to keep her busy enough without pulling teeth. She apparently handles most of the pediatric cases.
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