About this treatment
Occasionally, a nonsurgical root canal procedure alone cannot save your tooth and your endodontist will recommend surgery. Endodontic surgery can be used to locate small fractures or hidden canals that weren't detected on x-rays or during previous treatment, to remove calcium deposits in root canals, or to treat damaged root surfaces or the surrounding bone of the tooth.
Advanced technology, comfortable care
Endodontists use advanced technologies like digital imaging and operating microscopes to perform surgeries quickly, comfortably and successfully.
The most common procedure: apicoectomy
The most common surgery is called an apicoectomy, or root-end resection, occasionally needed when inflammation or infection persists in the bony area around the end of your tooth after a root canal procedure. In this microsurgical procedure, the endodontist opens the gum tissue near the tooth to see the underlying bone and remove any inflamed or infected tissue. The very end of the root is also removed, a small filling may be placed to seal the end of the root canal, and a few stitches help the tissue heal. Over a period of months, the bone heals around the end of the root. Local anesthetics make the procedure comfortable, and most patients return to their normal activities the next day. Postsurgical discomfort is generally mild.