Restoration for Root Filled Teeth

Root treated teeth are usually badly decayed or broken down even before root canal treatment; however, they are inevitably further weakened by the process.

Not surprisingly therefore, these teeth are extremely vulnerable to biting forces and may crack or break if left un-restored. Conventional wisdom dictates that most of these teeth should be protected against fracture by means of crowns or other forms of laboratory-made restoration which cover the entire biting surface of the tooth. (See also crowns. Where a root-treated tooth is extremely broken down, there may also be a need to provide a post and core in order to retain the restoration. The post fits into the root canal, and the core forms a foundation for the crown. Upon completion of the treatment, your dentist will discuss the various options available to you.

Despite all this attention, a heavily restored, root-treated tooth may still fracture, and when this happens the tooth would frequently be beyond salvage, despite all efforts. This situation sometimes presents us with a dilemma. Crowning a root-filled tooth may seem to be a ‘dramatic’ step to take, but the fracture of the tooth is usually such a catastrophic event that on balance the patient is usually better off with a crown than a fracture! Despite this, there will still be occasions when a decision is made to avoid crowning a tooth, accepting that the loss of the tooth, and subsequent restoration with an implant would be a reasonable worst case treatment in the event of fracture.