What Is the Cost of Root Canal Treatment?
There are many factors that affect the cost of root canal treatment. Each patient and tooth presents a different set of circumstances. Generally, the cost of root canal treatment is directly related to the chair time necessary to perform the treatment as well as to the costs of the staff, training, and technology that the dentist has available when performing the procedure. There are many factors that influence the amount of chair time necessary to treat any particular tooth:

• The position of the tooth in the mouth

• The number of roots and the number of canals within these roots

• Root curvatures and the length of the roots

• The presence or absence of calcifications within the root canal space

• Special dental considerations. For example, it may be more difficult for the dentist to work through an existing crown or a bridge than to work on a tooth with only a small previous filling. Also, some teeth may have been severely broken down by past dental disease and these may have to be "built-up" before root canal treatment can even be started so that an aseptic field can be established and maintained during treatment.

In addition to the chair time involved for treatment, other factors are also taken into consideration when determining a fair fee for root canal treatment:

• The cost of technology. Dentists who use state-of-the-art technology for certain procedures have invested in computer digital radiography, ultrasonic, and specialized training courses for themselves and for their staff. Those patients who benefit from them share the costs of these items.

• The costs of the dental office overhead include staff, rent, and supplies in addition to many other expenses. These costs vary significantly in different areas of the country.

• Fees vary among practitioners due to differences in their endodontic treatment philosophies, which in turn dictate the chair time required, the materials selected, and the technologies utilized.

In conclusion, there can be marked discrepancies in the fees charged for root canal treatment by different dentists. Ultimately, the best value for care is treatment that is done once and works over a period of many years. Conversely, the most expensive dental treatment is the treatment that may cost less initially but does not work predictably and needs to be redone one or more times. The wise dental consumer does not make a treatment decision on the basis of cost alone.

What Is Non-Surgical Root Canal Treatment (NSRCT)?
Non-surgical root canal treatment is a procedure directed towards saving an endodontically failing tooth. At times, the patient's existing artificial crown must be removed. In other instances, access through the crown may be possible. The access opening is created in order to give the dentist non-surgical access into the root canal space through the biting surface of the tooth. Once this has been accomplished, a non-surgical retreatment procedure oftentimes requires:

• Locating and treating previously missed canals.

• Removing old filling materials from the root canal space.

• Removing posts and broken instruments.

• Enhancing existing root canal treatment.

• Negotiating blocked canals and bypassing canal ledges.

• Repairing mechanical and pathological perforations in the root.

Once these objectives have been accomplished, the root canal system is re-cleaned, re-shaped, disinfected, and three-dimensionally sealed. A protective restoration can then be placed and the tooth restored to a state of health and function.

What Is Surgical Root Canal Treatment (SRCT)?
Surgical root canal treatment is a procedural effort in which it is necessary to elevate a small flap of tissue adjacent to the involved tooth in order to gain access to and treat root canal disease. Surgical root canal treatments are usually minor, in-office procedures performed under local anaesthesia. Once the pathological area is exposed, the doctor performs a "curettage" to remove the diseased tissue from around the root. This is usually followed by an "apicoectomy," a procedure in which the diseased portion of the root is removed. A small filling is then usually placed to seal the remaining portion of the root. Surgical root canal treatment will oftentimes result in a good long-term prognosis for the tooth if the cause of pathology can be effectively eliminated.

Unfortunately, on occasion, retreatment efforts may not be possible or cost-effective and extraction may be the only alternative. However, saving a tooth that has been previously treated endodontically and is failing is usually possible, can be very predictable, and is typically the most conservative option for the patient.