Endodontist

Root canals are notorious for not being fun, but sometimes they’re a necessary procedure. As an Endodontist, you specialize in these uncomfortable procedures, and work to make them as easy and painless as possible.

All Dentists are trained to do root canals, but Endodontists make it their daily work. Of course, this is good for patients, because they want the painful treatment done by someone who’s really an expert at it, and who can ensure that it’s done correctly and quickly. It also means you get the really difficult root canal cases. Examples are botched root canals where less experienced Dentists messed up, or cases where teeth have tangled roots or calcified canals.

In addition to root canals, you handle cracked or fractured teeth and emergency cases. A patient might have gotten a tooth knocked out, or jammed something into it hard. You can think of yourself as the Dentist who steps in when a patient needs a dental treatment out of the ordinary, or has pain that their regular Dentist can’t diagnose.

The first thing you do as an Endodontist when you meet with a patient is examine their mouth, hear their symptoms, and possibly take x-rays. Based on the information you gather, you make a diagnosis and then decide how you’ll handle the problem. Usually, this means performing a basic root canal, which requires nothing more than a few hours of work, and local anesthesia. In rare cases, you might need to reattach teeth or perform major surgery.