Apicoectomy Surgery
What is it?

Your teeth are held in place by roots that extend into your jawbone. Front teeth usually have one root. Other teeth, such as your premolars and molars, have two or more roots. The tip or end of each root is called the apex. Nerves and blood vessels enter the tooth through the apex. They travel through a canal inside the root, and into the pulp chamber. This chamber is inside the crown (the part of the tooth you can see in the mouth).

During Root canal therapy (Endodontic treatment), the canals are cleaned. Inflamed or infected tissue is removed. An apicoectomy may be needed when an infection develops or won’t go away after root canal treatment or retreatment.

Root canals systems are very complex, with many small branches off the main canal. Sometimes, even after Root canal therapy (Endodontic treatment), infected debris can remain in these branches. This can possibly prevent healing or cause re-infection later. In an apicoectomy, the root tip, or apex, is removed along with the infected tissue. A filling is then placed to seal the end of the root.