What is an Apicoectomy?

If your tooth has been bothering you for a long time, and you had a root canal procedure that was unsuccessful at getting to the 'root' of the problem, you may need a minor surgery called an apicoectomy, also known as root-end surgery. Dr. Roopi Kattaura of Ardas Family Dental in Parker, CO performs the apicoectomy procedure as well as general dentistry services.

 

What is an Apicoectomy?

 

An apicoectomy may be recommended if you have already undergone standard root canal treatment and it hasn't seemed to fix the problem. This is because there is lingering inflammation or infection continuing to affect your tooth. When root canal treatment fails to provide proper relief, an apicoectomy may be in order. This procedure treats the tooth more aggressively than a root canal by removing the tip of the root of the tooth.

 

The root canal treatment procedure accesses the root through the crown of the tooth, whereas apicoectomy is targeted at the root of the tooth. The crown of the tooth refers to the part of the tooth you can see and use to chew food. In an apicoectomy, the tip of the root of the tooth is removed, and then sealed and filled in to prevent further decay and infection from affecting the tooth.

 

How Do I Know if I Need This Procedure?

 

An apicoectomy is usually only considered when a root canal treatment has already been performed and failed to remove all of the infection. If you continue to have pain or another infection develops months or years down the road, an apicoectomy may be recommended by your dentist.

 

Procedure and Recovery

 

The procedure is rather simple and not to be feared. While it is a serious procedure, it should not cause excessive anxiety. When Dr. Roopi Kattaura at Ardas Family Dental in Parker, CO performs an apicoectomy, she takes great care with making you feel comfortable. The procedure begins by administering a local anaesthetic, then an incision is made in your gum to expose the infection and root of the tooth. The tip of the root will be removed and the root canal sealed. The gums that were separated to access the root of your tooth are then sutured back into place.

 

You may be prescribed antibiotics and painkillers that will help with swelling and pain. Usually, no more than a day or two of downtime is needed after this procedure. After about a week, you may need to come back to the office to have the sutures removed if dissolvable sutures were not used.

 

Dr. Roopi Kattaura performs the apicoectomy procedure at Ardas Family Dental in Parker, CO. Call us for more information about this procedure at (720) 459-8420.