Diagnosis & decisions
Keeping your natural tooth in Coalville
No replacement performs quite like the tooth you were born with. Implants and bridges are excellent when a tooth is truly lost — but a tooth with a sound root and enough structure to restore is almost always worth keeping, and only a thorough assessment can tell you which applies.
Why your own tooth is worth keeping
A natural tooth is suspended in bone by a ligament that senses bite pressure and maintains the bone around it. No surgery is needed to keep it, it costs less over the years than any replacement and, well treated and restored, it can last a lifetime.
What we assess
- Restorability. Is there enough sound tooth above the gum to carry a crown or filling for years?
- Cracks. A crack within the crown can usually be contained; one running down the root cannot be repaired.
- Bone and gum support. Where gum disease has already cost the tooth much of its support, endodontic treatment alone cannot restore it.
- Canal anatomy and earlier work. Blockages, posts and broken instruments can usually be dealt with, though they influence the prognosis.
- Your priorities. Time, cost and how you feel about treatment all form part of the decision.
The options
- Root canal treatment for a tooth never treated before.
- Retreatment when a previous root filling has broken down.
- Endodontic microsurgery when the root tip cannot be reached from inside the tooth.
- Removal and replacement, planned with your dentist, when the tooth cannot be restored with confidence.
A frank opinion, in writing
Some teeth are condemned because they look difficult; others genuinely should go. Our assessment of the realistic options, with the likely success of each, is given to you in writing so that the decision is yours and properly informed. Our guide root canal or implant? sets out the questions worth asking.
Alongside your dentist
We treat the inside of the tooth; your dentist restores and looks after it. Once treatment is complete, your dentist receives a report with X-rays and our recommendation for the final restoration.