root canals

Sadly root canals have had bad press over the years. However in Dr. Silberman's office he would prefer one to think of a root canal as a special filling- nothing more. What is a root canal? The purpose of a root canal is to remove the diseased nerve of a tooth, disinfect that area and fill that space with a rubber like material. The tooth and root stays intact. A good comparison is an attempt to remove the lead from a pencil and fill that space with an artificial substance; the pencil stays the same and essentially looks as before. Root canal therapy is somewhat time consuming but should generally not be painful at all.