Still reversible
Brief sensitivity to cold or sweets that disappears in seconds. The nerve is irritated but can recover: often it is enough to treat the cavity with a filling on time. It is the phase where arriving early saves the entire root canal.
Save the tooth in the south of Tenerife
Root canal treatment to try to save your natural tooth
"Killing the nerve" is the worst possible description of a root canal. What it actually does is save a doomed tooth — and the Spanish Endodontic Association has spent years trying to correct the myth. Here we tell you how it works, what to expect from the pain really (without impossible promises) and when a tooth can no longer be saved.
- The natural tooth first
- Emergency dental appointments for pain: we'll fit you in
- We serve in Spanish and English
Quick summary
The most important thing before deciding
~9 out of 10root-filled teeth remain in the mouth many years later, according to major follow-up studies
1–2regular sessions; evidence shows comparable results in one or multiple visits
0antibiotics cure pulpitis: nerve pain is not treated with pills, it is treated in the dental chair
2nd and 3rdOpportunities exist: retreatment and apicoectomy before talking about extraction
- What it is: remove the inflamed or infected nerve from inside the tooth, disinfect the canals, and seal them.
- What saves: the whole tooth. Keep chewing, stay in your bone, still yours.
- The pain: Root canal treatment doesn't cause pain — it relieves it. Post-treatment discomfort is real and manageable; we'll tell you about the difficult case too.
- Afterwards, on molars: Crown or inlay protection is not a decorative extra. We explain why.
What is a root canal (and why "killing the nerve" is a bad name)
Inside each tooth is a living tissue —the pulp, with its nerve and blood vessels—which can become inflamed or infected when a deep cavity, a fracture, or a blow reaches it. That is the serious toothache: the kind that keeps you up at night.
Root canal treatment removes that damaged pulp, disinfects the root canals millimetre by millimetre, and seals them so that nothing can enter again. The tooth stops hurting and stays where it is: chewing, preserving your bone and your bite.
That is why the Spanish Endodontic Association insists that the idea of "killing the nerve" is not correctthe tooth does not die — diseased tissue is removed and everything else is preserved. A root-canaled tooth is not a dead tooth: it is a tooth retired from pain that keeps on working.
Your symptoms, translated: the nerve ladder
The type of pain indicates quite well which phase the nerve is in. General guidance — the actual diagnosis is provided by the examination and the X-ray:
Probably irreversible
Spontaneous, throbbing pain that lasts for minutes, worsens when lying down, or wakes you up at night. Typical sign of irreversible pulpitis: the nerve no longer recovers and root canal treatment cuts the problem out by the root — literally.
The suspicious silence
It hurt a lot and stopped hurting on its own. Bad news disguised as good: it may mean that the nerve has died. The infection continues to progress silently towards the bone. It deserves a check-up even if it no longer "hurts".
Established infection
Pain when chewing, swelling, a "pimple" on the gum that drains, bad taste. Abscess or fistula: the infection has spread from the root. It is still treatable with root canal therapy in most cases — but the sooner, the better the prognosis.
What nobody tells you at the counter
Antibiotics don't cure your tooth
It is the most repeated call in any clinic: "Can you prescribe me something for my tooth?" And the honest answer, backed by the Spanish Endodontic Association, is uncomfortable: Antibiotics do not cure pulpitis. The antibiotic travels through the blood and inside a canal with the inflamed or dead nerve there is hardly any blood supply: the drug does not reach where the problem is. AEDE itself warns that antibiotics are frequently prescribed in cases where they are not indicated.
The result of the pill without a dental chair? The pain subsides for a few days sometimes —especially if there was an infectious component around— and come back, because the cause is still inside the tooth. Meanwhile, you're building up antibiotic resistance for nothing.
When are they prescribed? When the infection spreads — progressing swelling, fever, general malaise — and always as treatment support, not as a substitute. The cure for serious tooth pain is done with instruments, not with prescriptions. That's why, if you call with pain of this type, we don't send you to the pharmacy: We'll make room for you.
No impossible promises
Does a root canal hurt? What to expect
The terrifying reputation of root canals comes from decades ago, from treatments without current anaesthesia techniques. Today, the vast majority are done with the tooth completely numb, and what you feel is pressure and time with your mouth open — the relief from the previous pain actually arrives in that very same session.
And now the part that no "painless root canal" website tells you: in lower molars with the nerve screaming at full blast, standard anaesthesia it fails more than the advertising admits — is a well-documented phenomenon in the literature, caused by the inflammation itself. Does it mean you are going to suffer? No: it means there is a protocol-based Plan B — complementary techniques (intraligamentous, intraosseous) that rescue the anaesthesia in the vast majority of those cases. The difference between one clinic and another is not promising "zero pain": it is having the plan B ready and using it without you having to ask.
Afterwards? Discomfort when chewing for a few days, sometimes a bit longer in teeth that were heavily infected. It is managed with the regimen we give you, and if severe pain reappears days later (the so-called flare-up, rare but real), is not a sign of failure: it is treated and you move on. We are telling you beforehand so that, if it happens, it doesn't take you by surprise.
How we work
Your root canal step by step
Diagnosis
Exploration, vitality tests and X-ray: confirm that it is the nerve, which tooth exactly and what condition its roots are in.
Anaesthesia and isolation
Anaesthetised and isolated tooth with a rubber dam: the canals are worked in a clean field, free of saliva and new bacteria.
Canal cleaning
Nickel-titanium rotary instruments and electronic apex locator: each canal is cleaned and shaped to its exact length, not "by eye".
Disinfection
Thorough irrigation of the root canal system — the invisible part of the treatment and the one that most determines long-term success.
Sealing
The canals are filled and sealed with gutta-percha so that nothing can colonise them again. Control radiograph included.
Restoration
The tooth is rebuilt — and in molars, it is protected. This step has its own section because half of its survival depends on it.
One session or two? It depends on the condition of the tooth; the evidence shows comparable results. Cases with active infection sometimes benefit from medication between visits. It is decided by clinical judgment, not by the schedule.
After root canal treatment: half the success depends on the restoration
Here is a fact that the association of endodontists itself emphasizes: root-canal-treated teeth they do not break because of the root canal — they break because they usually arrive there already badly damaged by decay or fractured. Root canal treatment saves the root; whatever is left above it must be rebuilt wisely.
In practice: in molars and premolars that chew heavily, protection with a coverage—inlay or crown—multiplies the tooth's survival; on our page crowns you have the figures and also the opposite warning: the automatic crown "because it had a root canal" doesn't hold up in anterior teeth with little damage either. The conservative ladder applies here with more reason than ever.
The important thing: Root canal treatment and its restoration are a single treatment in two acts. Leaving a root-canal-treated molar unprotected for months with a temporary filling is the classic way to fracture it and lose everything you've invested. In your quotation, you will always see both procedures together.
Second chances: retreatment and apicoectomy
What if a tooth that had a root canal years ago starts acting up again? It is not the end. There is retreatmentreopen, remove the old filling, locate the untreated canal or the leak that recontaminated it, and reseal. Its published success rates are high—most retreated teeth stabilise.
And if the problem persists at the root tip, there remains the apicoectomya microsurgery that accesses the apex directly, eliminates the focus, and seals from below. With modern techniques, its published results are even better than its old reputation.
The practical moral: That a root canal-treated tooth hurts does not mean it is a sentence for extraction. It means an assessment.
The question of the year
Root canal, extraction or implant: how the decision is made
It has become fashionable to skip root canal treatment "because, after all, an implant is more permanent". Professional consensus says otherwise: when the tooth is restorable, keeping it wins. No implant equals the natural tooth in one thing that is not in the catalogues: the periodontal ligament, the biological suspension that cushions every bite and provides fine sensitivity when chewing. An implant is rigidly anchored to the bone; your tooth is not.
The numbers speak for themselves: the survival rate of endodontically treated and restored teeth is comparable to that of implants in long-term studies — with less surgery, lower total cost, and preserving your natural anatomy. And the implant isn't "forever" either: as we explain in your own page, requires lifelong maintenance and has its own complications.
When is the implant the honest answer? When the tooth is not restorablevertical root fracture, destruction below the gumline with no ferrule possible, or periodontal support that is already lost. In those cases, we'll tell you just as clearly—insisting on saving the unsavable is also bad dentistry. The house rule: The natural tooth first, and the implant when it really is the right choice.
Transparency
Root canal price: what it depends on
Root canal treatment
From €250
The final price depends on the tooth, the anatomy of the canals, and whether a buildup or crown is needed afterwards.
Indicative price. The final quotation depends on the clinical evaluation and is provided in writing before starting treatment.
The main variable is the number of canalsan incisor usually has one; a molar, three or four (and sometimes a hidden one). More canals, more working time. The second variable is whether it is a new treatment or a retreatment, which requires dismantling the previous one.
What does a root canal always include here
- The diagnosis with vitality tests and x-rays
- Anaesthesia — with plan B ready for difficult cases
- The treatment of all the canals of the tooth, with isolation
- The follow-up X-rays during and at the end
- The plan of quoted restoration at once — both acts together, no surprises afterwards
Frequently asked questions
Frequently asked questions about root canal treatment
Does a root canal hurt?
With the tooth well numbed, what you notice is pressure and time with your mouth open. In severely inflamed lower molars, standard anaesthesia may need reinforcement, and for that there are complementary techniques that we apply without you having to ask. Afterwards, discomfort when chewing for a few days with a regimen to control it.
How long does the treatment last?
Between one and two 60–90 minute sessions depending on the tooth and its condition; evidence shows comparable results in one or multiple visits. Molars, having more canals, occupy the high end of the range.
The pain has gone away on its own, is it already cured?
Beware of that "improvement": it could mean that the nerve has died and the infection is quietly continuing to advance towards the bone. Severe pain that goes away on its own deserves a check-up, not a celebration.
Can't you just prescribe me an antibiotic?
No, because it doesn't work: inside the canal there is barely any blood supply and the antibiotic doesn't reach it. Pulpitis is treated in the dental chair. Antibiotics are reserved as support when the infection spreads — never as a substitute for treatment.
How long does a root-canaled tooth last?
Large follow-up studies show that the vast majority are still functional many years later — with one condition: proper restoration on top, a crown or inlay on molars. Endodontic treatment and its restoration are a single two-step treatment.
Does the tooth turn black afterwards?
With current cleaning and sealing techniques, it is much less common than in the past. If an old root-treated tooth has darkened, internal whitening is available—this is evaluated during a consultation.
My root canal from years ago has started hurting again, does it need to be extracted?
Not necessarily: retreatment and apicoectomy exist, with good published success rates. The extraction It is the last box, not the second. It is evaluated with an X-ray and, if necessary, additional tests.
Isn't it better to extract the tooth and get an implant?
When the tooth is restorable, the professional consensus says that saving it wins: comparable survivals, less surgery, lower total cost, and you preserve your periodontal ligament. The implant is the honest answer when the tooth can no longer be restored — and then we will tell you just as clearly.
Toothache?
Request your assessment in Los Cristianos
If it is a sharp pain, call us directly: pain emergencies have a slot. If it is a question or a quote, write to us and we will call you.
- AddressCalle Barranquillo, 2
38650 Los Cristianos, Arona (Santa Cruz de Tenerife) - Phone and WhatsApp+34 654 58 55 53
- Emailinfo@smiletenerife.com
- Opening hoursMonday and Wednesday: 10:00 – 19:00
Tuesday, Thursday and Friday: 10:00 – 17:00
Saturdays and Sundays: closed