How will my tooth be fixed after the root canal treatment?
Teeth treated with a root canal treatment may be fixed with either a filling or a crown. Your dentist will assess the tooth to recommend what is best for the tooth. This is based on factors such as where the tooth is located in the mouth, pressure placed on the tooth, the amount of natural tooth structure present.
Molar teeth are used to chew our food which puts them under a lot of pressure. After a root canal treatment is completed, it is often recommended that molar teeth are fixed with a crown to protect them from the heavy chewing forces. Research has shown that covering of the cusps (raised points on the biting surfaces of the premolar and molar teeth) will increase the longevity of the tooth. It prevents cusps from bending and flexing, which can lead to the tooth fracturing. If the tooth fractures, it may need to be removed from the mouth.
Studies report that a root canal treated tooth has a greater chance of surviving for a longer amount of time if the tooth is fixed with a crown. One study showed that the number of years that a root canal treated molar tooth lasted, decreased significantly if a crown was not used to fix the tooth. After 1 years, 96% of molar root canal treated teeth survived, after 2 years only 88 % survived and by 5 years, it was down to 36% of teeth. Another study reported that root canal treated teeth that are not treated with a crown were 6 times more likely to be removed than teeth that received a crown after the root canal treatment was completed.